Underworld: Awakening (2012) returns in its fourth installment of the ancient war between vampires and lycans. After both species were driven underground following their discovery and subsequent cleansing by humans, Selene (Kate Beckinsale) wakes up in a world very different from the one he remembers. She now has a daughter, who comes at the price of a particularly bloody battle between the warring species, this time fighting for her own survival.
The stakes are also raised as new forms of hybrids appear on both sides, leading to some really great matchups. The battle rages on and new allies are made, though Michael Corvin remains unseen. Let's take a look at where 'Underworld: Awakening' leaves Selene and the vampire coven. SPOILERS FOLLOW.
Underworld: Awakening Synopsis
The film begins with a flashback narrated by Selene, in which we see her fall in love with the hybrid Michael Corvin after saving his life. The human discovery and subsequent purge of vampires and lycans is then described, driving both species underground. Discovering that Michael is being pursued by human forces armed with silver bullets and ultraviolet flash bombs, Selene tries to save him, but the two are separated by the force of an explosion. Selene then wakes up in a laboratory to find that she has been cryogenically frozen for many years.
As she flees the facility, Selene experiences visions that she believes are of Michael. However, she soon discovers that she shares a vision of a young woman named Eve, who has also escaped from the Antigen facility. It turns out that Eve is Selene's hybrid daughter, who was born at the facility while her mother was frozen. We soon experience Eve's incredible powers as she fends off a pursuing Lycan, ripping it in half.
Eve and Selene are saved by David, the son of one of the vampire clan's elders. He takes them to his hideout, much to the annoyance of his father, who is convinced that Eva and Selene's presence will spell trouble. The Lycans soon attack and defeat the vampires' fortress, kidnapping Eve in the process. Contrary to what vampires believed about the dwindling lycans, werewolves come in large numbers, some much larger than Selene remembers. It soon emerges that the Antigen facility she was being held in is a cover for the Lycans, who are trying to develop a vaccine that will make them immune to Silver.
Underworld: Awakening Ending: Ist Michael Corvin tot?
Selene, realizing her daughter is most likely being taken there, attacks the facility along with a sympathetic police officer who lost his vampire wife during the Purge. Well equipped, the Lycans strike back in force as they try to get Eve out of the facility and away from Selene. The van is intercepted by the detective while Selene enters the facility and discovers Michael's body frozen in a laboratory. She blows a hole in her cryochamber, breaking the glass, and continues to search for Eve.
Before she can reach her daughter, Selena is intercepted by the oversized Lycan that is the result of the anti-silver vaccine. He heals quickly and is immune to silver, but is tricked and killed by the vampire heroine. She then finds her daughter, as well as David, who has recovered after his battle with the Lycans and now has Selene's blood on him after being healed by her. Michael's chamber is empty and Selene, along with David and Eve, leaves into the night, vowing to restore the vampire coven's power.
Selene's lover Michael Corvin, who is apparently Eve's father, is once again nowhere to be found. Selene only glimpses him frozen in the chamber before firing a bullet at him and resuming the fight. This is a callback to how Selene escaped the same facility earlier on, when a leak in her room caused her to wake up from cryogenic sleep.
Although the vampire elder casually says that Michael has been dead for many years and Selene also hopes that he didn't survive the explosion, it appears that Michael Corvin is alive. Just like Selene was when she woke up, Michael is likely disoriented and has no idea where he is or how much time (12 years) has passed. Fortunately, Eve can share sight of him and see where he's headed, hinting that she and Selene will soon be reunited with Michael, who is the first hybrid.
Who is Alexandre Corvinus?
Alexander Corvinus, also known as the "Founding Father", was the first of the immortals and is responsible for the existence of both vampires and lycans. As part of a Hungarian war clan, his blood anomaly eventually mutated to make him immortal. Of his 3 children, one was bitten by a rabid wolf and turned into a werewolf, while the second was later bitten by a bat and the first became a vampire. Their third child was mortal.
In Underworld: Awakening, Selene informs the detective that she can survive sunlight thanks to a gift from Alexander Corvinus. In fact, shortly before her death, Corvinus bestowed his immortal blood on Selene, making her immune to sunlight and giving her a significant boost in strength and physical abilities. Because of this, she was later able to kill her son Marcus, the original vampire.
Why are the Lycans after Selene's daughter Eve?
The Lycans have been secretly building their strength and researching a vaccine under the guise of a human research facility called Antigen. Deemed to be disappearing and in hiding, while kidnapping Eve, they display the full force of their force, including the super-sized, instant-healing Lycan, who is the son of top Lycan researcher Dr. Jacob Lane is. We later learn that Eve grew up in the facility and never left until she escaped with Selene.
Eve is the daughter of Selene and Michael and is considered an advanced form of hybrid - more powerful than vampires and lycans. This is very apparent on several occasions when the little girl loses her temper and ends up decimating any creature that harms her. It is also mentioned that Eve didn't discover the extent of her abilities as a child, which means that she is about to get a lot stronger.
The Lycans, in order to gain immunity to Silver and grow stronger, plan to harvest Eve's genetic material to use in their vaccines. We can already see the results of the vaccine in the almost immortal giant Lycan. Therefore, they are after Eve to use her rare hybrid blood to strengthen herself and defeat both vampires and humans.
Eve's extraordinary power comes from the fact that she is the daughter of Selene and Michael, both powerful hybrids. In addition to carrying the genes of the original Corvinus clan - which were immortal - Michael was also bitten by Selene and later by the Lycan leader Lucian. This led to him becoming the first vampire-lycan hybrid with significantly superior powers. Selena, a vampire, obtained her power after drinking the blood of the original immortal Alexander Corvinus. So Selene and Michael's daughter essentially holds the holy grail of genetic material that she draws from the strengths of all species, making her a very valuable asset.
Keep reading:Where was Underworld: Awakening filmed?