Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones is a 2014 American found footage supernatural horror film written and directed by Christopher Landon. Released on January 3, 2014, in the United States, it is the fifth installment of the Paranormal Activity film series. It is also Landon's second directorial film, after Burning Palms. Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $90 million worldwide.
Plot
In June 2012, 18-year-old high school graduate Jesse Arista lives with his father Cesar, sister Evette, and grandmother Irma in Oxnard, California. In the apartment below lives a mysterious woman named Ana Sanchez, who everyone believes to be a witch. When Ana is found murdered, Jesse and his best friend Hector Estrella spot classmate Oscar Lopez running from the scene. The two investigate the apartment where they find black magic items, VHS tapes, and a journal of spells that can "open doorways to unholy places".
After Jesse, Hector and their friend Marisol Vargas try out a ritual, paranormal occurrences take place in Jesse's apartment. One night, the trio communicates with an unknown entity through a game. Jesse finds a mysterious bite mark on his arm and discovers he has superhuman abilities such as enhanced strength and levitation. At a party, Jesse takes a girl to Ana's apartment to have sex and encounters Oscar, who scares the girl away, and has black eyes and the same bite mark on his arm. Oscar tells Jesse that it's only a matter of time before "something inside them" will take over, and they will harm those they love before disappearing. Oscar then commits suicide by jumping off a building.
The group discovers a trapdoor in Ana's apartment, where they find a witch altar and photos of Jesse, his pregnant mother, Ana, Oscar, and Lois. Jesse is lured to the trapdoor one night and encounters the younger versions of Katie and Kristi, both with black eyes, before being attacked by an unknown force.
Jesse gradually becomes dark, suicidal, and violent, which disturbs Hector and Marisol, who meet Arturo, Oscar's criminal brother. Arturo tells them that Oscar was in contact with Ali Rey, who had researched demons after her father Daniel and step-mother Kristi were killed and half-brother kidnapped by a possessed Katie. Ali tells them that Jesse has been "marked" by a worldwide coven of witches called "The Midwives", who have been brainwashing women to give up their firstborn sons to create an army of possessed young men. Ali gives them an address to where a final ritual is supposed to take place and warns that Jesse will no longer exist if the demon fully consumes him and the ritual is completed.
Irma is pushed down the stairs by Jesse and taken to a hospital. Jesse attacks Hector, but Marisol knocks him unconscious. As they are attempting to leave, a van smashes into their car, and Jesse is kidnapped. Hector and Marisol, Arturo, and his friend Santo go to the address, which turns out to be Lois' house. In the garden, coven members rush in to attack but Arturo shoots them as Hector and Marisol run inside leaving Arturo's fate unknown. They find Santo dead and Marisol is also killed. Hector runs into a figure resembling Ana and is chased by a possessed Jesse. He flees into a room and shuts the door but Jesse breaks it down, forcing Hector to go through a strangely marked brown door.
The door he went through sends Hector back in time to the household of Katie and Micah. Hector sees Katie going to the kitchen. After unsuccessfully attempting to get her attention, Katie turns around to see Hector and screams for Micah, who assumes Hector is an intruder and tackles him, but Katie violently stabs Micah to death with a kitchen knife, which is how the first film ends. Hector tries to flee the house, only to be attacked and presumably killed by a demonic Jesse, as the camera drops to the floor. After a moment of total silence, a witch picks up the camera and turns it off.
Original Ending:
The franchise documentary revealed the original ending, which was changed when they chose to film a new ending in the same house that appeared in the conclusion of Paranormal Activity 3 (2011). It occurs after Jesse is knocked down by Hector and Marisol. They enlist Arturo's help and take him to a church, where they supposedly successfully exorcise Jesse's demon, after which they are attacked by coven members. The ending concludes with Jesse and Hector observing a small fire starting from inside the church.