Hunter Killer is a 2018 submarine warfare movie about Captain Joe Glass and the USS Arkansas trying to save the Russian president and avoid WWIII.

SUMMARY

 Hunter Killer is not based on a true story and takes liberties with its depiction of submarine operations.

Andropov trusted Glass because he risked his crew’s lives to save him and showed him evidence of the coup.

Glass gave Andropov his lucky coin as a sign of respect and gratitude for their successful mission to prevent World War III.

At the end of Hunter Killer, Captain Glass makes the bold move to trust Russian Captain Andropov and together they help avoid the beginning of World War III. Directed by Jonathan Marsh and based on the novel by Don Keith and George Wallace, Hunter Killer is a 2018 movie featuring performances from Gerard Butler, Gary Oldman, Common, Linda Cardellini, Toby Stephens, and more.

When a United States submarine is mysteriously destroyed in the ocean near Russia, the United States military and the NSA send Captain Glass (Geard Butler) and a Hunter-Killer submarine, the USS Arkansas to discover what happened.

It turns out the Russian Admiral Dmitriy Durov (Michael Gor) staged a coup and kidnapped the Russian President Zakarin (Alexander Diachenko) and attacked their own submarine in the process.

The United States military leaders and President begin preparing for war, but Glass is determined to stop the war before it happens, teaming up with Russian submarine captain Andropov (Michael Nyqvist) to extract the president and stop the coup.

Is Hunter Killer Based on a True Story?

How accurate is it to real-life submarine warfare?

Hunter Killer is not based on a true story, although it is based on the novel Firing Point (not to be confused with Tom Clancy’s book by the same name) by Don Keith and George Wallace.

Wallace was in the Navy and served on a nuclear submarine, which largely influenced the stories of his novels, all of which are about submarines and submariners.

Hunter Killer follows mostly the same story as Firing Point, although it slims down a much more complicated plot from the book, including completely cutting a side-plot about Russian hackers manipulating the US stock market during Durov’s coup.

While Hunter Killer has elements of accuracy in its depiction of Naval operations and submarines, it equally stretches reality, particularly in the speed and maneuverability of the submarine, such as a moment where Captain Glass outmaneuvers and outruns an incoming torpedo.

Additionally, the capabilities of much of the technology employed, military or otherwise, is often exaggerated or misrepresented in a way that borders on science fiction.

Real-life submarines move much slower and combat isn’t nearly as fast-paced, which wouldn’t translate well to a thriller like Hunter Killer, so the movie takes a few liberties with its depiction of submarine operations.

Why Adropov Helped Glass

How did he know Glass could be trusted?

After Glass realized there were still men inside the sunken Russian sub, he sent a crew to get them out, and one of the survivors was the ship’s captain, Andropov.

As Glass tried to navigate the USS Arkansas closer to the Russian base at Polyarny, he encountered an impenetrable field of acoustic mines and requested the help of Andropov despite the objections of some of the crew, including the XO.

Andropov was initially reluctant, but after Glass showed him the images showing the Konek was sabotaged, and told him risked the lives of his crew to save him, Andropov knew he could trust Glass.

Instead of navigating through the acoustic minefield, Andropov guided Glass and the USS Arkansas into what appeared to be a cave with a dead end. Glass trusted Andropov and ordered the Arkansas crew to follow his guidance and the cave opened up and the Arkansas emerged into Russian waters.

While many of the higher-ranking officers on both sides went to naval academies, Glass took pride in the fact that he came up through the ranks doing grunt work on submarines, which helped him earn the respect and trust of Andropov since the two men were cut from the same cloth.

Why Glass Gave Andropov His Coin

The Wichita coin was Glass’ lucky coin.

While he was the newly installed captain of the USS Arkansas, Glass rejected the Arkansas crew coin, instead holding onto his coin as a former crew member of the USS Wichita.

He initially says he’ll keep that instead since it’s his lucky coin, but at the end of the movie, after he’d worked with Andropov to prevent WWIII, the two men shake hands and Glass slips his USS Wichita coin into Andropov’s hand.

Glass’ reluctance to give the coin up previously shows how special it was to him, but after the events from the movie, it was the strongest way to show Andropov the respect he had for the Russian captain.

Andropov and Glass had a previous run-in, and while the movie doesn’t go into details, clearly both crews in that situation also successfully avoided conflict.

In fact, Glass had read up on Andropov and knew his experience and style, which is why he knew Andropov would be willing to help him navigate the minefield. In the end, because Andropov earned such a high degree of respect from his men, they refused to fire on the Arkansas, averting WWIII.

Thanks to his time on the Arkansas, Glass may be ready to swap his coin out for a new lucky Arkansas crew coin, but he certainly thinks Andropov deserves his Wichita coin as a memento.

Hunter Killer Ending and True Meaning Explained

Why Glass defied orders and the Russians attacked themselves.

The action of Hunter Killer was split primarily between two groups, the officers and politicians, the latter of whom were located far away from the action.

Rear Admiral John Fisk (Common) and Jayne Norquist (Linda Cardellini) from the NSA are working together at the Pentagon to try and prevent the conflict from escalating, sending Captain Glass and the USS Arkansas as well as a team of Navy SEALS led by Lieutenant Bill Beaman (Toby Stephens). Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Charles Donnegan (Gary Oldman) and other politicians are a little less risk-averse.

At the end of Hunter Killer, Donnegan orders Glass to strike the Russians before they destroy the USS Arkansas, but Glass stands down, knowing even a strike in self-defense would start WWIII, depending on the respect Andropov has from his trainees aboard the Russian ship. Likewise, the Russian sailors defied a direct order from Durov to fire on the Arkansas.

Not only do they defy orders, they also intercept missiles Durov fires at the Arkansas from Polyarny. The Russian ship then fires back and destroys the Polyarny command post, killing Durov and ending the coup.

While Donnegan and President Dover (Caroline Goodall) certainly aren’t attempting to create a war like Durov is, their approach to the situation would have certainly ended with calamity, while Captain Glass, Andropov, and Lieutenant Beaman, and the Russian sailors were far more prepared to do what was needed to prevent the war.

Because these men actually work on the ground, face to face with the soldiers who would die in the war, they had a stronger investment, and know-how, to take care of the situation. Additionally, each had the respect of the men they commanded, ultimately resulting in a successful mission.