What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

Everyone believed Jane, consumed by jealousy, rammed the car and then spiraled into guilt-wracked madness, which is why she was institutionalized while Blanche recovered from her paralysis. The public assumed Jane's mental state had deteriorated to the point of dangerousness.

The rivalry between the sisters that began in childhood foreshadows the destructive dynamics that led to the accident.

Blanche was driving the car the night of the accident, not Jane. She let Jane take the blame all those years because she was overcome with guilt and couldn't bear to destroy her sister's life further. This confession comes at the very end, as Blanche is dying on the beach.

The early rivalry between Jane's stardom and Blanche's longing for her own career plants the seeds of the sisters' toxic dynamic.

Jane resents Blanche's renewed visibility through home video releases, which threatens Jane's fragile sense of control. She intercepts Blanche's mail, reminds her constantly that she never would have had a career without Jane's past glory, and escalates to physical imprisonment when Blanche tries to secure their future without her.

The 1940s rivalry where Jane dominated the screen while Blanche served as understudy establishes the pattern of Jane needing to overshadow her sister.

Jane forges Blanche's signatures on checks to drain her sister's funds. When Blanche discovers this evidence while rummaging through Jane's drawers for food, she realizes the full extent of Jane's predatory control over their lives.

Jane's interception of all Blanche's mail and fan letters establishes her pattern of financial and informational control.

Dominick arrives for a therapy session and discovers Blanche bound with duct tape. When he attempts to help her, Jane stabs him to death with scissors and hides his body in the basement screening room. The murder eliminates the only person who could free Blanche and expose Jane's crimes.

Jane's escalating cruelty and imprisonment of Blanche set the stage for violence against anyone who might intervene.

The talent show turns out to be a drag revue, with Billy Korn himself costumed as Blanche. The supposed comeback opportunity was a con designed to exploit Jane's desperation for relevance. When Jane performs a childhood duet, the audience mocks her appearance and weak singing, triggering a public breakdown.

Billy Korn's offer to manage Jane's comeback for a cut of the proceeds signals his exploitative motives from the start.

Blanche carried the guilt of letting Jane take the blame for over two decades. She explains that she couldn't bear to further destroy Jane's life by revealing the truth after Jane had already lost her career and freedom. The secret remains hidden until the final moments when Blanche confesses on the beach.

The sisters' complicated history of rivalry and resentment made the truth too painful to face.

After Blanche dies from her injuries, Jane drives them to the beach, their childhood sanctuary. Overwhelmed by guilt upon learning the truth, Jane walks into the ocean. A police officer pulls her from the water, and the final image shows Jane smiling as she goes willingly with the authorities, accepting the consequences.

The childhood beach represents the one pure memory between the sisters before fame and rivalry corrupted their relationship.