Families Like Ours ending explained: Is Elias alive?

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

Families Like Ours season 1, released on June 10, 2025, on Netflix, follows the journey of displaced Danish families due to rising sea levels. Laura, torn between love for Elias and responsibility to her mother, Fanny, faces a series of emotional and physical challenges. Amidst chaos, Laura and Elias reconnect, reaffirming their love and choosing each other.

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Throughout the series, Laura and Elias' journey has a profound emotional connection, despite their love being put to the test many times as the world around them fell apart.

Toward the end of the show, Laura and Elias's relationship goes through a big change. After spending time apart, full of doubt and heartbreak, they get back together and figure out how to move forward together. Their story is about a love that lasts and overcomes physical and emotional obstacles.

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At the end of the series, Elias is very much alive, although he was presumed dead by his loved ones, when his belongings were found washed up ashore. The two are open to the idea of starting over with their lives together in a new world.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from Families Like Ours season 1. Reader's discretion is advised.


The ending of Families Like Ours: Laura and Elias choose each other

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

After a long and painful separation, Laura and Elias's path to getting back together starts with a series of bad luck. Laura misses her boat to Bucharest and gets stuck in Russia and then Poland. She starts to walk for three days, but then stops.

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Her family is worried, and Jacob does everything he can to get the police involved. Laura and Elias eventually get back in touch, and they decide to meet up in Stegna. But when Elias tries to cross the border illegally, he is arrested and beaten so badly by the police that he falls into a coma.

Laura won't give up on Elias, so she keeps believing that he is still alive. Even though Laura knows that he is probably dead and heard the terrible news from his mother, she still holds out hope. Around Christmas, she finally gets a text message from Elias letting her know that he made it through the ordeal alive but is now in a rehabilitation center in Poland and can't walk or sleep.

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Elias doesn't want to go when he hears that Laura is going to meet him at Mathilde's wedding in Finland. At the wedding, he doesn't look at her because he doesn't want her to see him that way.

As she sits next to him, she tells him that nothing has changed between them and that she still loves him the way he is. This is a turning point in their relationship. The couple feels emotionally close again by the end of the night, and they decide to give their relationship another chance.

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Laura’s decision to leave for Romania

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

In Families Like Ours season 1, Elias is a student, and Laura is a 19-year-old girl deeply in love with him. There were plans for them to move to Paris together. Jacob had found work at an architecture firm there, but as the evacuation crisis plays out, Laura is faced with a personal choice.

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Fanny, her biological mother, lives in Denmark and is also affected by the government's plans to move people. She is sent to Bucharest, Romania, and is cared for by the government there.

Laura prioritizes her mother's health over her future with Elias when she hears that her mother has to move, and how upset she is about it. Lucas, a young boy from Laura's daycare, sends her a drawing, which makes her think even more about her choice.

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The drawing shows Laura crossing a river on a sled. It makes her think that her mother might be left behind and might be in danger, and needs her help. So, Laura decides not to go to Paris with Elias but to go to Bucharest to be with her mother, Fanny, because she doesn't think her mother can handle the situation on her own.


Laura’s journey: From Romania to Russia and Poland

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

In Families Like Ours season 1, it gets harder for Laura on her journey when she misses the boat she was supposed to take to Bucharest because of widespread protests. Laura has to get to her mother quickly because time is running out, so she decides to take an illegal ferry. She doesn't get to Romania because she made this risky choice; instead, she reaches Russia and has to walk to Poland.

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Laura can't talk to her family during these three days, and they worry about her safety. Jacob calls the police and searches for any leads. He is desperate to find her, even though this could harm his career prospects.

Laura finally contacts Elias, who is still in Copenhagen. They agree to meet in Stegna, Poland, and then continue their trip to Bucharest from there. Elias runs into a problem, though, when he tries to cross the border into Poland without a passport.

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He is stopped by the police, which leads to a fight. Due to a deep-seated dislike of refugees, the police attack Elias violently, leaving him severely hurt and in a coma.

Laura can't get in touch with Elias, so she has to go to Bucharest by herself, without knowing how he is doing. As she tries to get back together with him while accepting that the world around her is falling apart, her journey turns into one of heartbreak.

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Also read: Families Like Ours season 1: Full list of cast and characters explored


Elias’s disappearance and Laura's continued hope

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

When the police beat up Elias badly, it broke the hearts of his family and friends. They believe him to be dead, especially after hearing reports that his belongings were found washed up along the coast. However, Laura won't accept this because she thinks Elias is still alive and will return to her.

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Laura keeps sending Elias texts, even though the odds are against her, hoping that they will reach him somehow. Her love for him never changes. Then, right before Christmas, Elias sends Laura a text message telling her that he is still alive and recovering in a Polish rehab center.

Laura is happy to know that he is still alive, but she is heartbroken to hear that he has grown apart from her. His illness makes him feel bad about himself, and he worries that Laura might not accept him as he is. Elias doesn't want Laura to visit.

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Laura is sure about her affection, even though there are physical and emotional obstacles in their way. Text messages are the first step in their emotional healing. In them, Laura tells Elias she loves him and will always be there for him. Her belief in their love leads to them getting back together in the end.


The Wedding sequence: A moment for Elias and Laura

In Families Like Ours season 1, for Elias and Laura, Mathilde's wedding in Finland is the emotional turning point. Although Elias has been healing from his injuries, he doesn't want to face Laura because he thinks she will find his condition disgusting. Elias carefully avoids looking at Laura at the wedding because he feels vulnerable.

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Although Laura is determined to close the gap. Speaking softly, she sits next to Elias and reassures him that their relationship hasn't changed, even though both of them have been through hard times.

After hearing her words of love and understanding, Elias's emotional wall falls. Their emotional healing starts with this private conversation. Laura tells him that she accepts him as he is and as he grows, and they can work out their future together.

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Since Elias isn't afraid of being hurt anymore, he starts to open up because he knows that their love is strong enough to get through the hard times ahead. The healing of their relationship and the chance of a new start together begin with this moment.


Henrik and Nikolaj’s struggles with guilt

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

In Families Like Ours season 1, Henrik and Nikolaj make a lot of morally difficult choices and feel guilty about them. Nikolaj is one of the first people to learn about the evacuation plans because he works in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He tells his husband, Henrik, the news, and the two of them quickly sell off their belongings to get ready for the chaos that is coming.

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Their lives take a dark turn, though, when Henrik kills an innocent man by accident while fighting with his brother Peter. This event keeps coming back to haunt Henrik, and he feels terrible about killing an innocent man, even though he didn't mean to.

Henrik wants to admit to his crime, so he thinks about turning himself in. But because the justice system has broken down, he is stuck. His guilt keeps building up until he meets Lucas, who, without meaning to, makes him think of how bad he was.

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Henrik finally decides to give Peter some of the money he has saved in exchange for a favor that will help Danilo find peace. The main idea of the series is to deal with guilt and find a way to move on, and Henrik's attempt to change is a good example of this.


Lucas’s new home in England with Henrik and Nikolaj

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

Lucas, a young boy with amazing skills, is one of the main characters in the story. Lucas is having a hard time with his new life in England after being sent there by his mother, Christel. He suffers from feelings of loss and confusion because he can't connect with his foster family.

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His life changes, though, when Henrik and Nikolaj take him in. They were thinking about adopting a child before the escape crisis. They become very close to Lucas and give him the support and stability he needs to do well. Lucas's story arc shows the importance of having a family during tough times.


Fanny’s new career and Holger’s departure in Families Like Ours season 1

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

When Fanny decides to start writing again after years, it shows how she has changed. With her brother Holger's help, Fanny gets the tools to return to work, including money for a laptop. At first, Holger doesn't want to leave Denmark, but at the end of Families Like Ours season 1, he decides to go to Thailand to start over and get away from the life he has known.

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His departure aligns with the show's central theme, that we need to accept change and let go of the past. Even though she didn't want to move to Bucharest at first, Fanny gets used to it and finds a new sense of purpose and connection with her passions. Her journey shows that there is hope for renewal, even after moving and losing something important in your life.


The evacuation of Denmark and the displacement crisis

The Danish government states that people need to leave their homes because of rising water levels caused by climate change. Despite attempts to redirect the water through dams and drainage systems, nothing works, and things worsen

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In Families Like Ours season 1, the parliament decides to support the people to move to other countries. This decision affects millions of Danes, including the main families in Families Like Ours.

Jacob, a skilled architect, needs to find a new place for his family to live and work right away. He tries to get a job in Paris by contacting an old acquaintance. But because the crisis is getting worse so quickly, the future is no longer clear. Amalie, Jacob's wife, and their son Mikkel are also getting ready to leave Denmark, joining the other people who have to leave.

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People are forced to leave their homes, belongings, and lives because of the government's official evacuation plans. This turns everyone's life upside down.

After this mass evacuation, the families will have to go on a journey that will be hard on them physically and emotionally as they try to find safety in other countries. The family is torn between staying together and going their separate ways because of all the trouble.

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Jacob and Amalie’s new beginning in Paris in Families Like Ours season 1

A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)
A still from Families Like Ours (Image via Netflix)

The story of Jacob and Amalie in Families Like Ours season 1 is one of hope and persistence in the face of huge challenges. The couple lost their home and have a hard time finding work after the evacuation. They decide to move to Paris, where Jacob gets a job.

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They try to start over, but their plans are thwarted when Jacob's involvement with the police causes them to lose their housing and jobs. The couple has to get low-paying jobs.

Amalie works as a cleaner and then as a receptionist. They keep holding on to each other and their hopes for a better future, even though things are hard for them. In the end, their dwindling savings and Amalie's desire to keep their family together make Jacob decide to move to Bucharest with Laura and Fanny.

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Families Like Ours season 1 is available to stream on Netflix.

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Edited by pratigya dhali
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