Sadako vs. Kayako (2016) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

The Cursed Videotape Strikes

A social worker visits the residence of an elderly woman, only to find her strangled by an electric cord. A nearby video player suddenly turns on and begins playing the cursed videotape. As the social worker watches, Sadako Yamamura appears and kills her as well.

Where

The elderly woman's residence

The Students Play the Tape

The video player is sold at a shop and bought by university students Yuri Kurahashi and Natsumi Ueno, who discover the cursed videotape inside and play it. The curse's deadline has been reduced to just two days, and the footage now displays a decrepit building instead of the usual well. Yuri gets distracted by her phone, leaving Natsumi to watch the tape in its entirety by herself.

Sadako Manifests

The girls receive a disturbing phone call as Sadako manifests in the room behind Yuri, startling Natsumi. Meanwhile, a worker at the shop who had watched the cursed tape leaps to her death, proving how deadly the curse truly is.

Seeking the Professor's Help

Yuri and Natsumi return the video player and learn about the deaths related to the tape. Desperate, they go to their professor Shin'ichi Morishige, an author on urban legends. Obsessed with the idea of meeting Sadako, Morishige eagerly watches the tape, even though Natsumi only has one day left to live.

The Exorcism Disaster

After suffering intense headaches from receiving a phone call, Morishige takes the girls to an exorcist. Sadako possesses Natsumi and forces the assistants to kill themselves, before the exorcist begins to boil from the inside and kills Morishige for interfering. With her dying breath, the exorcist tells the girls that a man with psychic powers, Keizo Tokiwa, will help them.

Yuri Curses Herself

When a despondent Natsumi blames Yuri for her situation, Yuri decides to watch the tape herself, hoping the curse will pass to her and Natsumi will be spared. Keizo Tokiwa arrives, accompanied by a blind psychic girl, Tamao, who tells Yuri that she has unnecessarily cursed herself. Tamao explains that the only way to expunge the curse is to pit Sadako against another vengeful spirit so both destroy each other.

Natsumi's Death

Yuri learns that Natsumi has uploaded the cursed tape onto the Internet and is attempting to commit suicide to escape her imminent death. Whilst Yuri rushes to save her, Sadako appears before Natsumi and kills her by hanging. Keizo and Tamao realize that Sadako has targeted Kayako Saeki to be the rival spirit.

The Saeki House Beckons

High school student Suzuka Takagi starts having dreams of the haunted Saeki house after moving in nearby with her family. She runs into Keizo and Tamao, who state that the house beckons to Suzuka. Keizo warns her not to enter the house or she will be killed.

Where

Near the Saeki house

A Fatal Prank

After Suzuka leaves, a group of bullies arrives and forces a schoolboy to enter the Saeki house. Kayako and Toshio violently drag all of them to their demise, including the schoolboy and the group's leader, who is killed by having his head snapped off by Toshio.

Where

The Saeki house

Suzuka Enters the House

That night, Suzuka thinks she sees a schoolboy inside the Saeki house and goes inside, where she sees Toshio. Her screams prompt her parents to rush in, only to be killed by Toshio and Kayako. Keizo saves Suzuka, but she is already cursed.

When

That night

Where

The Saeki house

The Double-Curse Plan

Yuri and Suzuka agree to team up for Keizo's plan and enter the Saeki house together. Inside, Suzuka watches the cursed videotape while Yuri sees Kayako, so that both girls become afflicted with both curses. Keizo hopes this will make Sadako and Kayako fight over the girls and obliterate each other in the process.

Where

The Saeki house

Sadako vs Kayako

As the plan unfolds, Toshio appears, but Sadako drags him inside the TV as he screams. Sadako crawls out of the TV whilst Kayako crawls downstairs, and the two vengeful spirits brutally confront each other. The battle ultimately ends in a stalemate, with neither spirit able to destroy the other.

Where

The Saeki house

Sacrifice at the Well

Keizo reveals his last resort: one of the girls has to lure both ghosts into a well outside the house so they can be sealed inside. Yuri chooses to sacrifice herself, jumping into the well as Sadako and Kayako rush toward her. The massive collision bisects Keizo and turns both ghosts into a giant mass of hair, flesh, and eyes, which falls into the well, presumably crushing Yuri to death. Suzuka seals the well, imprisoning the ghosts.

Where

The well outside the Saeki house

Sadakaya is Born

The sealing does not work and instead backfires terribly: the two curses combine into a single entity known as Sadakaya, now possessing Yuri's body with Sadako's appearance and the sound of Kayako's death rattle. Suzuka screams in horror as Tamao's psychic powers are overwhelmed, and Toshio reappears behind them. The girls' fates are left unknown.

Where

Outside the Saeki house

Post-Credits: The Modified Tape

In a post-credits scene, the modified version of the cursed videotape is shown. Sadakaya menacingly contorts her body, imitating the movements of both Sadako and Kayako, before teleporting to the screen and emitting a death rattle.