What does the iceberg mean in Netflix’s Below? Creator breaks down that ominous ending

*Warning: Spoilers ahead for Below*

All of the many plot points are wrapped up by the end of Below. Sadly, Mudder, the giant squid, and her babies don’t survive. But the dastardly Crockers are driven away, leaving the locals to live in peace at Snook’s Arm. However, the Netflix show pulls the rug out from under us at the last minute. 

Throughout the show, we’re led to believe that the monster-sized kraken is the true villain of Below. The opening scene shows a young Calvin Penney and his family seemingly being terrorised by the sea creature as they relocate to Snook’s Arm island, leading to the death of his father.

When we catch up with Calvin (Josh Hartnett) decades later, his local son Wade (Charlie Heaton) and his other two children, Mary (Ruby Stokes) and Jay (Rohan Campbell), reunite at the Newfoundland fishing village, only for the creature to start causing trouble once more. 

As Mudder starts attacking locals out on their boats, residents also begin experiencing bizarre symptoms: circular marks on their backs, psychedelic hallucinations and an unquenchable thirst. 

It’s not until later that marine biologist, Dr Fonda Howander (Mackenzie Davis), figures out that Mudder’s secretions have gotten into the local water supply, causing this strange illness. But it’s far from the only revelation. 

You see, Mudder isn’t a big bad at all. She’s been using the recently surfaced iceberg to hatch her eggs. And the only reason she’s so close to shore is because of climate change causing the ocean’s temperature to rise. 

The real villains are the Crockers, a wealthy family led by Jim Crocker (Frank Moore). They’re the reason Calvin and his community were forced out of their island all those years ago after the Crockers discovered it held a source of cobalt and copper – two valuable metals used in things like electric cars and smartphones.

It’s also the reason the powerful family now wants to move the residents of Snook’s Arm. The Crockers plan to bomb Mudder and her eggs to get her out of the way, but Calvin and Wade put a stop to it. 

By the finale, Jim and his workers have been driven out of Snook’s Arm, Dr Fonda decides to stay, and the locals finally have some peace. It’s a surprisingly hopeful ending – until the very final scene. 

Calvin and Wade head out on their boat, only to see new icebergs have appeared in their waters. 

What do the new icebergs actually mean at the end of Below?

Maybe a new Mudder? Or a fresh outbreak? Well, apparently, the icebergs represent something far closer to home: climate change. 

Netflix’s Tudum said that the last ominous image is a glimpse of what’s to come, particularly when it comes to global warming. Below creator Jesse McKeown explained, “Things are going to get worse, they’re going to get weirder, they’re going to get a lot scarier, and it’s going to happen really quickly.”

So, while Calvin saw the initial iceberg at the beginning as a stroke of luck to make some money from, “after everything he’s been through, he doesn’t see dollar signs. I think he sees something much darker,” said McKeown.

Adding to this, Calvin star Josh Hartnett explained what’s going through his character’s head in that final scene: “‘Oh, sh*t.’ In the world of this show, that one iceberg had some pretty intense secrets. Are there any other things that are about to come out of these many icebergs?”

McKeown also elaborated on the scene in a conversation with Variety, saying, “I feel like you always try everything on for size as you’re going, but the idea of that visual was there from the very beginning, in the outline for the show. 

“I think in some ways it is a happy ending for Calvin and his family, but it’s a reprieve. They get to live to fight another day, and so it was important not to turn away from the real catastrophe that’s heading for us.”

There is, of course, another unresolved plot point from the end of Below: what happened to that baby squid in Dr Fonda’s freezer?

Could the baby squid in Dr Fonda’s freezer play into season 2?

Netflix is yet to renew Below for a season 2, but it’s still early days. Perhaps what’s most interesting is McKeown and executive producer Jessica Rhoades’ response when asked about the baby squid. 

If you recall, in episode 5, Dr Fonda is researching a piece of the ice when she discovers something unusual inside of it. She pops it and discovers it’s a baby squid from Mudder, realising the iceberg “is a f**king nest”. 

As she’s inspecting the baby, it moves and she jumps, throwing it into the air before it lands in the freezer. She quickly closes the lid, and though she tells Calvin and co about the nest, that’s the last we see or hear of the surviving baby. 

When Variety asked if the creature in the lab is still alive and roaming around, Rhoades and McKeown didn’t say a word. But, it reports, they “smile and give big shoulder shrugs, indicating they couldn’t possibly know the answer to that”. 

Could this be a big clue if Below season 2 goes ahead? It’s certainly possible. 

McKeown did speak about a potential second season, saying that while he hadn’t thought about it “in any serious way”, “obviously there are things that you think about during the course of making it, little pipe dreams and offshoots. And we never wanted to wrap up the ending in a tidy little bow anyway. But no, I haven’t thought about it at all.”

Hartnett also told Men’s Health that while Below is billed as a limited series and the cast and crew have moved on to new projects, he’s not totally against the idea if Netflix does decide to renew it.

“If it becomes a massive hit, then there’s always room to imagine a future, and I would, without a doubt, love to go play Calvin again,” he said. “For me, the door’s not closed, but it’s a limited series.”

For all the latest film and TV updates and hot takes, like our Facebook page.

Featured image credit: Netflix