Does Neil Really Die in Tenet?

Neil’s death in the movie Tenet surprised everyone and led to the question – is Neil’s death permanent? The question of whether his death can be annulled opens up a topic for discussion and presents a wide range of theories.

In the movie, after the organization Tenet recruited the Protagonist, he meets Neil. Neil is a British spy who will help the Protagonists in his mission to prevent the Third World War by manipulating time. The protagonist and Neil quickly become friends and fight for the survival of the entire world. When the Protagonist spotted the same backpack on Neil as on the corpse in the cave, he was confused. Neil dissuaded him and told him that this was just the beginning of their friendship.

Could there be a Tenet sequel ?

It took director Nolan more than five years to write the screenplay, after a decade of discussing Tenet’s ideas. Nolan leaves the door wide open that can lead to the further friendship of Neil and Tenet. On the other hand, Neil explicitly says that these adventures are a thing of the past for him and that he is putting an end to his story. It can be said that Neil’s death is the core of the director’s inspiration, which takes the film to a higher level. Considering all this, yes, Neil is dead.

Neil’s survival would only minimize his sacrifice. He saves the world from a deadly algorithm. Without his sacrifice, all the efforts they would have made would have been in vain. The protagonist is saved by a mysterious figure, only to finally realize that the mysterious figure is Neil. His sacrifice is only his duty to his friend.

Neil’s death in Tenet is concrete and definitive. However, Neil told the protagonist that he would recruit a younger version of himself for other adventures. So, we can say that each end is a new beginning.