Sumith Prasad
Netflix’s satirical science fiction film ‘The Platform 2’ ends with a mid-credits scene that sheds light on several events that happen in the Pit. The particular portion of the Spanish movie is actually the closing scene of the original film ‘The Platform.’ Goreng, the protagonist of the 2019 thriller, arrives at the bottom of the Pit with the “Child,” who is described as the “message” to the Administrators of the “Vertical Self-Management Center.” Then, astoundingly, he meets and recognizes Perempuán, the main character of the 2024 movie. Their unexpected meeting and embrace reveal not only their relationship but also when the events in the film take place! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Goreng is Seemingly Perempuán’s Ex-Boyfriend
After choosing to live in the Pit, the only people Perempuán talks about are her ex-boyfriend and his son. The sculptor feels responsible for causing the latter’s death since he died after falling on a sharp blade that was part of her creation, a sculpture of a dog. The incident immensely weighs her down emotionally, even though she was cleared of having any involvement in the tragedy. She feels guilty about setting up an installation without adequate safety measures that pave the way for the death of a young child. Perempuán might have decided to live in the Pit to escape from her then-partner, who lost his loved one due to her carelessness.
Considering what drove Perempuán to the Pit, her enthralled reaction after seeing Goreng can have ties with her past. If that’s the case, the protagonist of the original film is her ex-partner, from whom she has been hiding by ending up in the tower. The sculptor must have been under the impression that her former boyfriend hates her and holds her responsible for the death of his child, which explains her shock upon seeing the young man. Such a belief makes him the last person she expects to meet in the Pit. The embrace they share clarifies that Goreng does not have any ill feelings toward her, and it is even possible that he chooses to live in the tower to find her.
When Perempuán chose to live in the Pit, the decision might have stunned Goreng. Understandably, he must have been immersed in the grief of losing his son at the time, which likely stopped him from lending his emotional support to his partner. His suffering possibly stirred self-hate in the sculptor, only for her to select the tower as the cage where she could repent. After overcoming his grief, Goreng may have understood that he could not blame his former partner for his kid’s death since she intentionally didn’t do anything to harm the child. From ‘The Platform,’ we know that the young man is incredibly empathetic, as evidenced by his efforts to help Miharu.
Goreng must have felt the same empathy toward Perempuán, who chose to rot away for an unintentional mistake she committed. Such a feeling may have guided him to the Pit to find her. The young man is an exception when it comes to the history of the establishment’s residents. The main inhabitants of the tower end up in the structure after committing a crime or condemnable mistake. Perempuán, Trimagasi, and Zamiatin killed or nearly caused the death of someone before arriving in the Pit. However, that’s not the case with Goreng.
The statements Goreng offers as the reasons behind his decision to live in the Pit — to stop smoking, read ‘Don Quixote,’ and acquire a degree — don’t sound legitimate. It is inconceivable how someone can choose Hell to stop a bad habit when thousands of rehabilitation centers provide comfort and monitoring to aid him. Therefore, the young man must have chosen the tower to find Perempuán. His efforts to go to every possible level in the establishment in the name of rationing food can be a trick he pulls to discover whether his ex-girlfriend is living on any of them.
The Platform 2 Takes Place Before The Platform
When ‘The Platform 2’ was in the works at Netflix, it was expected to be a sequel that sheds light on what happens to Goreng and the Girl/Child after the ending of ‘The Platform.’ The revolutionary changes within the Pit that are introduced at the beginning of the follow-up film can make viewers believe that the same are the consequences of Goreng’s message. When the Loyalists initially talk about the Master, the face that appears in the audience’s minds has to belong to the young man. Similarly, the Anointed Ones may seem like the individuals who support him in the original film, like Baharat and Miharu.
Trimagasi’s unexpected appearance then shows that the narratives of ‘The Platform’ and ‘The Platform 2’ may not be chronological. Still, the surreal appearances of the mysterious man in the original film are enough to influence any viewer not to make any inference solely based on his presence. However, the mid-credits scene sheds light on the timeline without any doubt. Since the portion takes place after Perempuán’s death, it is clear that the follow-up movie is actually a prequel rather than a sequel. Soon after Perempuán ends up at the bottom, Goreng must have entered the tower, becoming Trimagasi’s new cellmate.
Goreng is not the Master, and the Anointed Ones are not the individuals who help him. The laws in place in the establishment are not the results of the young man’s efforts but the reason why anarchy prevails in the 2019 film when it comes to food.
Read More: Where Was Netflix’s The Platform 2 Filmed?
