‘Goosebumps’ 2023 Ending Explained: Does Isaiah Die? Is Kanduu Back?

Woo-wee! Goosebumps has had us on the edge of our seats since its premiere on October 13, 2023 – and its twisty season finale is no different. 

Throughout the season, a group of high school students investigate the tragic death of teen Harold Biddle. They discover that their parents went to school with the young boy and know more about his demise than they let on. 

It was revealed mid-season that their English teacher Mr. Bratt (Justin Long) is not as trustworthy as seems as he was cursed by Slappy the Dummy, who had previously taken Harold’s spirit after a failed ventriloquist act.

Now streaming on Hulu and Disney+, the finale opens with Margot (Isa Briones) wanting to move to Seattle, and Mr. Bratt reworking the ending of his novel after receiving criticism from a publishing company.

A flashback reveals evil magician Kanduu (Chris Geere) clashing with famed puppeteer Franz Mahar (Paul Rust) after turning a carnival crew into puppets using dark magic. Feeling betrayed, Franz turns Kanduu into Slappy by using the spell, and is stabbed to death in the process.

What happens next? Will Margot move? What will happen to her budding relationships? Will Kanduu succeed in taking over the entire town of Port Lawrence? Do all the teens survive the Kanduu’s latest attack? Here’s everything that happens in the Goosebumps finale.

Goosebumps 2023 Ending Explained:

In the penultimate episode, Margot and her friends visit Seattle, and the finale sees them gearing up for their return to Port Lawrence. After Margot reveals that she wants to relocate to Seattle, her boyfriend Lucas (Will Price) gets upset and runs off. 

Lucas is the first to return home and is shocked to see that his father is alive after dying while doing a dangerous mountain stunt. He happily reunites with his father. However, something doesn’t feel right. When Lucas goes to hug his father, the elder man turns into a living puppet.

The rest of the teens return to the town and upon arriving home they undergo similar situations. Isaiah (Zack Morris) – who harbors an intense crush on Margot – gets a visit from a football recruiter interested in getting him to sign a contract to join a professional league. Isaiah realizes that something is wrong. He doesn’t sign the contract or initiate any more contact.

Margot arrives home to see that her parents have rekindled their relationship and immediately runs out the front door. The group, minus Lucas, reunites after not having fallen for the evil trick. They discover that Lucas and their parents have been cursed, along with a majority of the town. 

The uncursed teens find Mr. Bratt, who tells them, “They’re all under a spell,” and it is revealed that the townspeople have been turned into living dummies controlled by Kanduu. That’s right! The English professor made a deal with Slappy that freed Kanduu in exchange for a new ending to his book, which is based on the evil curse. 

Kanduu claims that he must sacrifice 1000 souls to achieve his grand mission. The evil spirit then curses Mr. Bratt’s dog and tells it to kill the teens, but Mr. Bratt steps in and seemingly kills his pet to save their lives. Um… I thought this was PG-13? 

The group tries to destroy Kanduu’s magic book but he claims that it will do no good because he has already memorized all the spells. So instead, Margot finds the proper spell in the magic book and undoes Kanduu’s current spell. 

Basically defeated, the ghost soldiers from Kanduu’s past come back to grab him, but as they brawl, Isaiah, who had previously confessed his love to Margot, gets shot. 

With only a few minutes left in the episode, it is clear that the finale is going to set up for more. Isaiah’s parents are told that he likely isn’t going to pull through, and the best they can do is “make him comfortable.” At the hospital, Margot confesses her love for Isaiah while he’s on his deathbed and pulls out Kanduu’s book of evil magic. She does a spell to seemingly bring him back to life. Girl?! Have you learned nothing from the past nine episodes?! The scene cuts to Mr. Bratt looking in the mirror and seeing Kanduu in his reflection. He says, “Not again!”

So, Isaiah recovers thanks to Margot’s spell and Kanduu is back in the Goosebumps finale. It is unknown how the spell will affect Isaiah but given the nature of Kanduu’s magic, he is likely not going to be himself. With many questions still left unanswered, the show is clearly teeing up for a second season – which we’ll be tuning into!