Inception Finale Solved: Nolan Finally Reveals Movie's Biggest Mystery 

Christopher Nolan 's sci-fi masterpiece Inception ( 2010) follows a team of 'extractors,' led by Leonardo DiCaprio 's Dominick Cobb, who infiltrate the dreams of powerful people and steal secrets from the depths of their subconscious. In the film, they have to implant an important idea into the mind of the heir to a business empire.

A spinning top is an important artefact in the story, used by Cobb to determine whether he is in reality or in a dream. In a dream, the top spins endlessly; in reality, it eventually falls.

At the end of the movie, Cobb returns home after the mission, reuniting with his family. He spins the top, as if out of a habit, but then goes to his kids and doesn't get to see the result of the test. It remains a mystery whether the top would fall or continue spinning forever.

This mystery has been baffling fans for years ever since Inception came out in 2010. But recently, director Christoner Nolan was able to address the issue while speaking about his new movie, Oppenheimer, on the Happy Sad Confused podcast.

And… he didn't really shed any light on the matter. The director and screenwriter for Inception said that DiCaprio's character simply didn't care if he was in reality or in a dream: the most important thing for him was that he could finally spend time with his family. Nolan didn't find it necessary to answer whether the spinning top would eventually stop.

'I went through a phase where I was asked that a lot. I think it was [producer] Emma Thomas who pointed out the correct answer, which is Leo's character… the point of the shot is the character doesn't care at that point. It's not a question I comfortably answer,' Nolan said.

The director noted that the controversial ending was not emotionally ambiguous, as the character made a specific choice — to stay with his family. Although the final scene is puzzling for viewers, Cobb's emotional state at the end is very straightforward and leaves no questions unanswered.

However, if you're still looking for a definitive answer, you may get it from one of the cast members. In 2018, Michael Caine said that the scene with his character Miles was set in reality — and since Miles was there at the end of the movie, it probably wasn't a dream after all.

Source: Happy Sad Confused Podcast