Straw ending explained: What happened to Aria?

Straw is a thriller film that premiered on Netflix on June 6, 2025. Tyler Perry is the writer and director of this film, and he has also produced it with Angi Bones and Tony Strickland. Here's the official synopsis as per Letterboxd:

"A delightfully bizarre fever dream filtered through the works of Monty Python and Hunter S. Thompson. (Allegedly)"

The film stars Taraji P. Henson, Sinbad, Sherri Shepherd, Glynn Turman, Ashley Versher, Rockmond Dunbar, and Mike Merrill. Let's take a look at the ending of the film and what happens to Aria.

What is the plot of Straw?

Straw revolves around a single mother named Janiyah Wiltkinson, who is taking care of her sick daughter. As she continues to do that, Janiyah's world starts to change as she begins seeing things very differently.

How does Straw end?

As Straw reaches its conclusion, we see Janiyah reaching her daughter's (Aria) school. The social services reach the place and take her daughter. On her way, Janiyah hits a cop car, and it's impounded. Because she reached her office two hours late, her boss fired her from the job. Janiyah then asks for her last paycheque, the authorities refuse, and ask her to check her mail.

Her problems don't end there, as when Janiyah reaches home, she sees all her belongings thrown outside by the landlord. She returns to her office for the cheque, but her boss again refuses to give it. Suddenly, a bunch of robbers show up, and a rift takes place. Amid all of this, Janiyah ends up shooting one of the robbers. Her boss called the cops to report that she was a part of the robbery. Janiyah ends up shooting him dead and leaves with the cheque.

She reaches a bank that refuses to give her the cash because of a lack of an ID. Janiyah points a gun at her, but the employee pushes the emergency button. The cops are now looking for her for her boss' murder and a robbery attempt. Her problems don't end there, as Aria dies. Earlier, she had suffered a seizure. Janiyah then pretends that her daughter is alive to cope with the grief.

Detective Kay Raymond is the only one who comes forward in her support. The bank manager named Nicole also remains by her side. Janiyah realizes that the CPS person did not show up in school. So this means that the social service folks didn't take her daughter. Janiyah has visions of getting shot by the police. Towards the end, Nicole holds her hand tightly as they walk out and reach Raymond's office. Janiyah wants to surrender to the cops.

If Janiyah is prosecuted, her lawyers might show that she was not doing well mentally that day when things spiraled out of control. Even when she was waving the gun, Janiyah only wanted to take her salary. So her team can come up with their points that could save Janiyah from serious legal repercussions.

What do you think of the film's ending?