“The Intern” ending explained: Does Jules stay on as CEO?

Key Points

• The Intern was released in theaters on Sept. 25, 2015.

• The Nancy Meyers comedy follows a 70-year-old widower who comes out of retirement to serve as the intern for the CEO of an e-commerce fashion startup.

• The movie ends on a note that’s both heartfelt and uplifting.

It’s been nearly a decade since The Intern charmed audiences, but in classic Ben Whittaker (Robert De Niro) fashion, it’s aging quite gracefully.

Written and directed by rom-com legend Nancy Meyers, the warm and witty workplace dramedy follows a 70-year-old retired widower who becomes a senior intern at a fast-growing fashion website, where he forms an unexpected friendship with the startup’s workaholic CEO.

When The Intern was first released in September 2015, it was praised for its cozy vibes and low-stakes emotional warmth. As Entertainment Weekly put it at the time, the movie’s “tone remains as plush and soft-cornered as one of Meyers’ ubiquitous throw pillows.”

Almost 10 years later, The Intern is finding new life on Netflix, sparking fresh interest in its quietly emotional ending.

So what happens in those final scenes? Does Ben stick around at the company? Does Jules (Anne Hathaway) give up her role as CEO? Let’s break down the ending of The Intern.

What is The Intern about?

At the start of The Intern, Ben Whittaker is a 70-year-old widower and retired executive with way too much time on his hands. He’s done the whole “golden years thing” — traveling the world, taking Mandarin classes, learning to cook, and even trying his hand at tai chi. However, none of it fills the empty void in his life. He’s bored, lonely, and looking for purpose.

Eventually, he stumbles across a flyer for a “senior internship program” at About The Fit, a booming e-commerce fashion startup in Brooklyn.

From there, Ben is assigned to the company’s high-powered but overwhelmed CEO, Jules Ostin, who’s less than thrilled to have an intern (especially one so much older than her). She initially ignores him and refuses to put him to work. After noticing how Ben’s old-school charm and work ethic win over the entire office, though, Jules warms up to him, too.

The two quickly form an unexpected friendship. Ben begins driving her around, becoming a steady presence in her chaotic world. Ben even begins to see the cracks in Jules’ seemingly perfect home life, including the strain being put on her marriage to Matt (Anders Holm) and the challenges of raising their young daughter, Paige (JoJo Kushner).

What happens with Jules and Matt’s marriage?

As Ben becomes more involved in Jules’ day-to-day life, he also gets a closer look at her family dynamic. It’s clear things aren’t as flawless as they seem. Her husband, Matt, gave up his own successful career to become a stay-at-home dad when About The Fit started to take off. On the surface, they look like a loving, supportive couple — but behind closed doors, their relationship is quietly falling apart.

Jules is constantly buried in work, often coming home late and continuing to answer emails in bed. The physical and emotional distance between them is growing, and neither seems able or willing to meet the other’s needs.

Then comes the movie’s most devastating revelation: One afternoon, Ben drives Paige home from a birthday party and spots Matt leaving another woman’s house, getting in her car, and kissing her. He understands the weight of this betrayal, especially since Jules is already under enormous pressure to step down as CEO in hopes of “saving” her marriage and making things work at home.

Does Jules step down as the CEO of About The Fit?

Toward the end of the movie, Jules is advised to step down as CEO and hand over the role to someone outside the company. Her investors believe the business has outgrown her and that she can’t juggle the intense workload. After some deliberation, Jules reluctantly agrees, believing that stepping down will give her more time to fix her relationship with Matt and be more present for Paige.

She even flies to San Francisco to interview a possible replacement, bringing Ben along for moral support. During the trip, Ben brings up Matt’s affair, only to learn that Jules already knows. She saw suspicious texts on his phone but hasn’t confirmed them yet, seeing as she’s still trying to process it and isn’t ready to blow up her life just yet.

So, in a moment of self-sacrifice, Jules decides to go ahead and hire the new CEO. But once she and Ben get back to New York, he encourages her to reconsider, reminding her just how much heart and hustle she put into building About The Fit from the ground up. He says that giving it all up out of guilt or pressure isn’t the answer.

Jules is happy to hear this, and she’s visibly relieved to hear someone validate her commitment to the company.

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Once at the office, Matt unexpectedly drops in. Instead of pressuring Jules to step down, he tells her to “do what feels right” for her. Jules admits she wants to keep running her company, and Matt supports her decision, saying he doesn’t want her to be unhappy.

He then finally confesses to his infidelity and assures Jules it’s over, apologizing and telling her he lost sight of who he really is. Most importantly, though, Matt tells Jules he doesn’t want her to give up her work or dreams for him — and if she’s willing to try again, he’ll be better for her and their daughter.

What happens at the end of The Intern?

After Matt comes clean about his affair and pleads with Jules to stay on as CEO, she has a change of heart. She realizes she’s not ready to walk away from the startup, acknowledging that she poured too much of herself into it to hand it over to someone else.

Naturally, the first person she wants to share this decision with is Ben. But when she goes looking for him, she’s told he’s taken the day off, finally taking some time for himself to attend his beloved tai chi class in the park.

In the film’s final scene, Jules finds Ben and joins him in tai chi. It’s a moment of calm, connection, and release, a rare pause in Jules’ otherwise hectic life. For once, she lets herself just be — no emails, no meetings, no fashion emergencies to manage. Just relaxation, balance, and a friend who helped her rediscover her footing (and happiness, too).

Where can I watch The Intern?

The Intern is now available to stream on Netflix.

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