G20 movie ending explained: Is Edward Rutledge dead?

G20 is an action thriller film directed by Patricia Riggen for Amazon Prime Video that premiered on Thursday, April 10, 2025. The film stars Viola Davis as the President Danielle Sutton of the United States, who jumps into action to save her family and fellow world leaders when a group of terrorists led by Anthony Starr as Edward Rutledge takes over a global summit taking place at the Grand Diamont Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa.

Disclaimer: The following article contains the author’s opinion and spoilers from G20. Reader’s discretion is advised.

In the climax of the film, Rutledge takes Sutton’s daughter, Serena, as a hostage and attempts to escape on a helicopter from the roof of the hotel. The President arrives right before they can take off and foils the plan, engaging Rutledge in a brutal fight. It ends with Rutledge falling down to the sea from the rooftop, signifying his death, while Sutton manages to hold on to a ledge to save her life.

The fighting skills that Sutton displays during the crisis are explained by her being an US Army veteran who has served in Iraq. Her heroic action of saving a young boy whose family gets killed in a terrorist attack earns her a picture on the front page of TIME magazine. After becoming the President, Sutton is seen fighting to gather the support of world leaders to eradicate world hunger at the G20 Summit.

---

Why does Edward Rutledge attack the G20 summit?

While Rutledge initially describes himself as a more intense version of Robin Hood, it becomes clear as the film progresses that he has no intention of helping anyone other than himself after stealing from the rich. Taking over the G20 summit, he announces to the world that he intends to show them how corrupt their leaders are.

Rutledge tells everyone to distrust banks and reinvest all their money in crypto to take back control from governments. However, it turns out that he is in possession of a crypto wallet, which makes him richer as people follow his advice. To further accelerate the process, he creates and broadcasts deepfake videos of world leaders discussing how they plan to siphon away money from ordinary people.

However, Rutledge also has a secondary, more personal agenda, which involves taking revenge on Sutton. A former member of the Australian Army, he is seen to be present in Iraq with Sutton and blames her for the death of two of his comrades during a covert mission. The incident leaves him a broken man filled with rage and mistrust for authorities and sets him on his mission to dismantle global institutions

---

Who betrays Danielle Sutton in G20?

Joanna Worth, the Treasury Secreatry for the President, betrays her trust as she is revealed to be the mastermind behind the attacks in G20. The animosity between Worth and Sutton is foreshadowed when they are shown as rival candidates in the last presidential election. Sutton realizes where Worth’s loyalty lies when she sees her pocketing Rutledge’s crypto wallet.

When confronted, she accuses Sutton of taking away her destiny of becoming the commander-in-chief. It is shown that Worth has been Rutledge’s enabler from the onset. She picks the hotel for the summit, as well as ensures Rutledge’s team gets to infiltrate the security at the event.

While Worth’s betrayal is deeply personal, Sutton is also betrayed by US Agent Darden, who opposes her Together Plan that seeks to solve world hunger. A representative of conservative American values in the film, Darden believes that the Unites States is trying to help other nations while its own citizens remain in need of assistance. Unlike Worth, who gets to live a disgraced life at the end, Darden dies for his beliefs, opposing the President.

---

G20 is available for digital streaming exclusively on Prime Video.