The Good Nurse ending explained: Why did Charles Cullen confess to the crimes?

Tobias Lindholm's The Good Nurse premiered on Netflix globally on Wednesday, October 26, 2022, bringing to light the story of the "angel of death" Charles Cullen. Cullen intentionally added lethal doses of medication to IV pouches of patients while working as a nurse, killing approximately 400 patients. With Eddie Redmayne in the shoes of the prolific killer, the film explored the more human side of the story.

Distancing itself from other serial killer films and shows that are increasingly becoming very common and popular, The Good Nurse focused on the friendship between Cullen and his fellow co-worker, the titular "good nurse" Amy Loughren, played by Jessica Chastain. The film laid heavy emphasis on empathy, friendship, and how a nurse was able to catch one of the most prolific serial killers of all time.

In the end, Chastain's Amy Loughren became instrumental in getting the killer to confess. However, why did this happen? Read on for a breakdown of the ending of The Good Nurse.

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The Good Nurse ending: A cloud of mysteries still prevail

Charles Cullen was not the easiest person to understand. While he was not entirely sane as is understood in conventional terms, he did not function along the lines of criminals like Jeffrey Dahmer or other serial killers either. Cullen showed enough empathy for others and often genuinely cared. This made him very difficult to understand. Moreover, he refused to ever explain why did what he did, and The Good Nurse did not forcefully dramatize this aspect of his story either.

The film moved towards its climax when Amy Loughren agreed to meet Cullen for lunch while wearing a wire. The police were closely monitoring them during this time, and with Cullen's reaction to Amy's questions, the police found enough evidence to at least arrest him. However, it was a steep way up from there.

After his arrest, Cullen refused to answer any questions (Redmayne showed some of his best acting in the process). Unable to extract anything from him using various methods, detectives relied on Loughren again. The empathetic Loughren stepped in to talk to Cullen in a way that is only possible between people who care for each other.

With Amy Loughren's soft approach and understanding of Charles Cullen, he finally opened up about a few victims he had intentionally poisoned. But he, too, seemed unclear about what he had done. This admission was enough for law enforcement to charge him, but Cullen never clarified why he did it.

The Good Nurse ascribed how he did it and how he was caught, but did not explicitly detail why Cullen confessed to Amy. Perhaps he really cared for Amy or had understood that he could not escape it this time. The film did not dig any deeper than it needed to, leaving some things about the killer unconfirmed.

In the closing scene, a few title cards revealed that Charles Cullen was sentenced to 18 consecutive life sentences with no possibility of parole. It also mentioned that Charles Cullen never revealed why he committed the murders. The credits also showed how hospitals preferred to cover up Cullen's crimes rather than lose their reputation, a move that resulted in more deaths.

The Good Nurse is now streaming on Netflix.