Enola Holmes ending explained – will there be a sequel?

If you sat down to watch the film last night but you're not quite sure what happened during the tale's climax, we've explained Enola Holmes' ending to tie up any loose ends you might have.

Here's everything you need to know about the ending of Enola Holmes.

** WARNING – SPOILERS FROM THIS POINT ON ***

Who was trying to kill Tewkesbury?

Viscount Tewkesbury, who runs away from home to branch out from his aristocratic roots, soon realises that a bowler hat-wearing hitman is out to get him and manages to escape his clutches a handful of times, thanks to Enola's help.

While Enola initially suspects Tewkesbury's uncle, Sir Whimbrel Tewkesbury, to behind the assassination plot as he would inherit their family estate, Basilwether Hall, as well as his place in the Lords, where he would be able to vote for or against the reform bill, in the event of the Viscount's death.

However, during the climax of the film, we learn it was the Dowager (Frances de la Tour), Tewkesbury's grandmother, who wanted him dead as she resents his progressive ideals and knew he would vote for the reform bill. The film also hints that the Dowager had hired a hitman to kill Tewkesbury's father, who would have also voted for the reform bill.

She hints at her political learnings earlier in the film, when she finds Enola in Tewkesbury's treehouse and tells her: "That is what it is to be an ancestral landowner. As the world becomes increasingly unstable, it feels important that these ideas of England are preserved for the safety and security of the future of our country."

Before shooting her grandson, the Dowager says, "I'm so sorry my darling. The future of the country is at stake," although her murderous attempt is thwarted when we discover that Tewkesbury was wearing a breastplate, which acted as a bulletproof vest.

At the end of the film, we learn that the Viscount's vote in the Lords had a huge impact and allowed the reform bill to pass.

Why did Eudoria disappear?

Eudoria disappears from the Holmes family estate at the start of the film, although it's clear she left of her own accord, with Sherlock noting she hadn't replaced her drawing pencils, which were whittled down to nothing, and therefore knew that she wasn't coming back.

While Enola believes Eudoria's ciphers and hints were encouraging the young sleuth to find her, she becomes unsure when she finds her mother's huge stash of gunpowder, women's suffrage leaflets and a note reading: "Protest, unrest and civil disobedience: these three devices will cause maximum disruption."

It's therefore inferred that Eudoria went into hiding as she's planning a dangerous act of protest to campaign for women's right to vote. At the end of the film, we learn Eudoria never intended for Enola to find her as she didn't want to implicate her in the illegal plans her group was organising.

"I wanted to tell you where I was going, but it wasn't safe," she tells Enola in one of the film's last scenes. "I didn't leave you because I didn't love you, I left you because I couldn't bear to have this world be your future, so I had to fight."

It's therefore possible the codes and hints left by Eudoria for her daughter were meant to let her know she was safe and that, if she needed her, she could send her an encrypted 'iris', which was code for message.

"Thank you for the irises," she tells Enola before leaving once again. "If you ever ever need me, I'll be looking out for them."

What happened with Eudoria's gunpowder plan?

Enola deciphers her mother's code once she gets to London and heads to Limehouse Lane, where she finds a warehouse full of leaflets for Women's Suffrage and barrels of explosives.

While the film never explains what Eudoria and her suffragette group had in mind or where they planned to use the gunpowder, it's possible they would have detonated the explosives had the Reform Bill – which gave women the right to vote – been voted against in the House of Lords.

In the early 1900s, the Women's Social and Political Union, who campaigned for women's suffrage, did plant bombs and set fire to buildings in order to raise awareness of their cause – so it's likely Eudoria's plan in Enola Holmes was a reference to this, especially as Eudoria tells Enola at the end of the film: "You have to make some noise if you want to be heard."

During a fight with Viscount Tewkesbury's assassin, Linthorn, Enola sets off the gunpowder to distract him and escape, so the plan may have not gone ahead as Enola used all of it. However, as Eudoria leaves Enola by herself once again at the end of the film, it's possible her work with the suffragettes is not yet done and so the abandoned gunpowder plot may be explored in a possible sequel.

What happened to Enola?

It's unclear what happens to Enola at the end of the film as her mother is on the run once again and she's left alone in London.

According to the books, Enola decides to stay in London and open up her own detective agency – although, at the end of the film, we learn that Sherlock takes Enola on as his ward. It's therefore possible she'll become Sherlock's apprentice, as Sherlock expressed earlier in the film that he'd want to take her under his wing.

Will there be an Enola Holmes sequel?

Enola Holmes ends with Enola venturing out into London by herself, ready to set her own path – leaving the film open for various sequels.

With five other books in Nancy Springer's series to adapt for the big screen, it's more than likely we'll be seeing Enola once again, especially since the film's star Millie Bobby Brown has hinted that she'd like to do a sequel.

"There's more of the story to be told," she told Deadline. "The story isn't over yet. She isn't grown up, there's no conclusion. I think she'll forever be someone who is always evolving, but there's definitely more to be shown on screen."

Enola Holmes is currently available to stream on Netflix. Check out our lists of the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix. If you’re looking for something to watch, check out our TV Guide.