Inception has an ambiguous ending that leaves the audience wondering if Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is still dreaming or is awake and finally reunites with his family, and one subtle detail puts an end to this debate. Christopher Nolan’s movies are known for dealing with themes like time and identity, and in Inception, he mixed these with the complexity of dreams. Inception was a critical and commercial success, and it’s regarded as one of his best works, despite leaving viewers with a huge question at the end.

Inception introduced viewers to Dom Cobb, a professional thief specialized in infiltrating dreams to extract information from a person’s subconscious mind. Cobb is offered a deal by Saito (Ken Watanabe) to perform an “inception” in exchange for having his criminal record erased so he can return home. Cobb puts together a team to perform the “inception”, which turns out to be a lot more complex than initially thought. The multi-layered dream blurred the lines between dreams and reality, leaving the question of whether Cobb was dreaming at the end or not – but one detail already answered this.

Cobb’s Wedding Ring Answers Inception’s Biggest Question About The Ending

Cobb Wears His Wedding Ring On Specific Scenes

Inception ends with their mission succeeding as they planted the idea they needed in Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy) and Cobb bringing Saito back from Limbo. Saito honors their deal and makes the call to clear Cobb’s name and let him enter the United States. Cobb finally reunites with his children, but to be sure he’s not dreaming, as he had been waiting for this moment for a long time, he spins Mal’s totem, but the movie cuts to black before it falls.

This left the big question of whether Cobb was still dreaming or not, but one detail ends the debate: Cobb’s wedding ring. Many viewers have pointed out over the years that Cobb only wears his wedding ring when he’s in a dream, but he doesn’t in the real world. This also made way for a theory that suggests the wedding ring was Cobb’s real totem, but he stopped using it and, instead, started using Mal’s after her death. Even if it’s not a totem for Cobb, he isn’t wearing his wedding ring at the end of Inception, proving he wasn’t dreaming anymore.

Other Evidence That Cobb Wasn’t Dreaming At The End Of Inception

More Details Show Cobb Wasn’t Dreaming

Nolan left Inception’s ending intentionally ambiguous, but there’s enough evidence to support the belief that Cobb wasn’t dreaming and that he truly reunited with his children. In addition to the wedding ring, the clothes his children are wearing when he arrives are slightly different from the memory he had, and he finally sees their faces again, which he couldn’t do in his dreams and memories. A big clue that’s often overlooked is that Inception shows the multi-layered dream collapse, thus bringing everyone back, even Cobb and Saito after landing in Limbo.

Another big clue to Cobb being in the real world at the end of Inception was given by Michael Caine, who said his character never appears in dreams, only in the real world, and he’s present at the end as he’s the one who picks Cobb up at the airport and takes him to his children. Of course, there’s also the top itself, which, even though it isn’t shown falling, starts losing its balance right before the screen cuts to black. Christopher Nolan created one of the most talked-about endings in modern cinema, but there are convincing clues about Cobb getting a happy ending.