Summary

• GTA 5 offers 3 different endings where Franklin must choose between killing Michael, Trevor, or teaming up with both.
• Two of the endings result in tragic consequences for the characters.
• Players are ultimately free to choose to believe whichever ending they feel is appropriate, but there is one believed to be canonical.

Grand Theft Auto 5's single-player campaign seems fairly straightforward, but the three ending possibilities are anything but. GTA 5 gives players control over how the story will reach its dramatic conclusion, with a choice of three very different options. Protagonist Franklin Clinton must decide between killing Michael De Santa, killing Trevor Philips, or teaming up with both. While there is a true ending to the game, there is no right or wrong answer for players other than leaving things in a way that they feel confident about the choice they made.

[Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Grand Theft Auto 5.]

Before reaching the concluding decision, GTA 5's protagonists rob the Union Depository Bank of $200 million in "The Big Score." Franklin goes home to cool down after the heist, where antagonists Steve Haines and Devin Weston approach him, ordering him to kill one of his comrades. Haines wishes Trevor dead because of his unpredictability, which makes him a liability. Meanwhile, Weston failed to have Michael's family killed as revenge for the accidental death of his lawyer, so he enlists Franklin to finish the deed. Franklin's third hidden option is to ignore the antagonists, enlisting Michael and Trevor's help to take down Haines, Weston, and several other enemies.

GTA 5: Ending A, Explained

Franklin Chooses To Kill Trevor

If a player chooses to ignore Trevor's redeeming qualities and act on Haines' request in GTA 5's ending, Franklin arranges a meeting with Trevor. They begin discussing recent events, and Franklin (perhaps looking to justify his choice to carry out Haines' wishes) says Trevor's wildness will get him and Michael killed. He then proceeds to pull a gun on Trevor, but Trevor manages to escape in his truck. Michael arrives to help during the chase, ramming Trevor's truck into an oil tank.

Trevor is injured in the crash, but still alive, and falls out of the truck and into the spilling oil while berating Franklin and Michael for their betrayal. At that point, either Franklin or Michael shoots at Trevor and ignites the spilled oil around him, causing Trevor to burn alive in a gruesome death. Michael rants about Trevor's shortcomings, and then he and Franklin agree that "Surviving is winning, [...] whatever it takes." The GTA 5 Union Depository heist's earnings are then split between the two of them.

GTA 5: Ending B, Explained

Franklin Chooses To Kill Michael

Things begin similarly if the choice is made to kill Michael during GTA 5's ending, with Franklin arranging a meeting with Michael instead. Michael gets off a call with his wife, celebrating the fact that he finally has money and his family back - but Franklin doesn't take long to kill the mood, explaining his reasoning for what he's about to do to Michael. He says, "We both know this [...] ain't over," meaning they won't be able to get away with the heist if they don't appease Haines and Weston. Knowing what's coming, Michael escapes to the Palmer-Taylor Power Station, and Franklin chases him down.

Knowing that Michael had betrayed Trevor in the past, Franklin says that he felt used by Michael and that he could be betrayed any day since "People don't [...] change." Michael makes one final retort, saying, "You did! You! Two-bit gangster gone three-bit," meaning Franklin has gone from a simple thug to a full-on, scheming and backstabbing criminal. Franklin then pushes Michael over the side of a tower, and the choice is given to either drop or save him.

However, it's merely an illusion of choice. Even if the option is chosen to save Michael, he'll headbutt Franklin in self-defense, which forces Franklin to drop Michael to his death anyway. Regardless of his approach to the situation, Franklin calls Lamar Davis and walks away. Both Trevor and Michael's family end up shunning Franklin, knowing he was likely the one who killed Michael. Since Michael still has family around, his cut from the Union Depository heist is still taken out rather than being split solely between Franklin and Trevor.

GTA 5: Ending C, Explained

"Deathwish" Ending, Franklin Chooses To Team Up With Trevor & Michael Instead

If the choice is made not to betray Trevor or Michael during Grand Theft Auto 5's ending, Franklin will instead consult heist mastermind, Lester Crest. He devises a plan to lure Haines' FIB agents and Weston's Merryweather mercenaries to the metal foundry. Under the guise of melting down the gold from the heist, the protagonists will be lying in wait for an ambush.

After successfully outsmarting and taking out the soldiers, the team splits up to tie up loose ends; Trevor kills Haines, Michael kills an old enemy of Franklin's named Stretch, and Franklin kills Triad leader Wei Cheng, who had a feud with Trevor and Michael earlier in the game. Once this is finished, Trevor stuffs Weston in the trunk of his car and drives it to a cliffside in the Chiliad Mountain State Wilderness. The three push his car off the cliff, and the money from the heist is split among them. This outcome feels most in line with the three protagonists and their character development throughout the game.

Which Is GTA 5's True Ending?

GTA 5's Official Ending

People are left free to choose whichever Grand Theft Auto 5 ending they prefer and to speculate about which they believe in their personal canon, but later events in the series show Franklin and Trevor both alive with talk of Michael being alive. Although there is no official statement by Rockstar, it is a common belief that Ending C, "Deathwish," is canonically correct.

GTA 6 will be taking place within the same universe as GTA 5 but with a new cast of characters and a different story arc for the game itself. Therefore, players truly can choose to believe whichever ending they feel is most suitable for their playthrough of the game, and what they want to have happen to the characters. Ultimately, the fate of Franklin, Michael, and Trevor remains in the hands of the player through Grand Theft Auto 5's three different endings.

Source: MrGlennDK/YouTube