1Dawn of the Dead's Unsettling Undead
The 2004 remake of "Dawn of the Dead" by Zack Snyder featured only short one-to-two close-ups of the undead compared to the original. Advances in special effects and makeup made test audiences uncomfortable with zombies that looked too "human."
2. The scene depicting the serial killer's death in Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones" was reshot to be more gruesome because test audiences felt that the character's death was not violent enough and wanted to see the character in more pain.
3. In an earlier version of "The Long Kiss Goodnight," Samuel L. Jackson's character was killed off, but it was rewritten after a member of the test audience shouted, "You can't kill Sam Jackson!"
4. There was an alternate ending for the "Masters of the Universe" movie, where it is revealed that the United States landed on Eternia (He-Man's home planet) during a NASA mission.
5. The original ending of "Pretty Woman" didn't have Vivian riding off with Edward. Instead, she gets on a bus with Kit, anticipating a fun day financed by Vivian's week with Edward, while Vivian "stares out emptily ahead."
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6Mean Girls' Book Confiscation
The original ending of "Mean Girls" involved Mrs. Norbury confiscating drugs from Kevin G and getting caught due to the Burn Book.
7. In "The Karate Kid" (2010), there was actually an alternate ending where Jackie Chan's character engaged in an epic Kung Fu battle with the enemy coach.
8. In Kevin Smith's movie "Red State," the original ending was intended to feature a special effects-heavy sequence depicting the beginning of the apocalypse.
9. There was an alternate ending to "The Legend of Zorro," in which a grown-up Joaquin puts on his father's Zorro costume and rides off into the sunset, while the elderly Alejandro and Eléna watch proudly. However, this ending was changed to allow for potential future sequels.
10. There is an alternate ending to Kevin Smith's movie Clerks," in which a man robs the Quick Stop and kills Dante.
11Terminator 2's Future Family Scene
There is an alternate ending to "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" that takes place in the year 2029, where an elderly Sarah Connor watches her son, Senator John Connor, play with her granddaughter.
12. In an alternate ending of "The Nightmare Before Christmas," Oogie Boogie was revealed to be Dr. Finklestein in disguise.
13. The Butterfly Effect (2004) had an alternate ending in which Evan (Ashton Kutcher) goes back to his birth and commits suicide using his umbilical cord.
14. In the original ending of the movie Labyrinth, Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) punches Jareth (David Bowie), causing him to transform into a small, whining goblin.
15. Die Hard With A Vengeance has an alternate ending in which Simon and McClane engage in a Russian Roulette round with a rocket launcher.
16Halloween's Fiery Reshoot
The original ending of the 2018 film "Halloween" featured Jamie Lee Curtis' character and Michael Myers battling outside the house. However, test audience reception was negative, leading to a reshoot with the burning house scene instead.
17. The movie "Dodgeball" (2004) had an alternate ending where Average Joe's gym loses, abruptly ending the movie. However, this was changed due to negative reactions from test audiences.
18. The original ending of "Romeo Must Die" featured Jet Li kissing Aaliyah but was re-filmed to depict them sharing a "tight hug." This change was made because "Mainstream America, for the most part, gets uncomfortable with seeing an Asian man portrayed in a sexual light."
19. The original ending of Men in Black II was set on the World Trade Center but had to be re-filmed following the events of September 11th, 2001.
20. The original ending of the 2014 movie Birdman was intended to mirror the beginning, but with Johnny Depp in the dressing room where Michael Keaton's character started and Captain Jack Sparrow's voice speaking to him. This concept was eventually dropped, and the final version differed.
21Independence Day's Unbelievable Finale
There was an alternate ending to the original Independence Day that featured Casse flying a red biplane with a missile attached to it. However, this ending was scrapped as it was deemed "not believable."
22. In the original ending of Rocky V, Rocky was supposed to die in a final in-ring fight against his protégé Tommy Gunn. However, the studio executives rejected the idea. Director John Avildsen remarked, "So Rocky didn't die, but the movie died because that was the point of the movie."
23. The original ending of Back to the Future had Marty driving at 88 mph toward a nuclear blast at a test site. However, due to cost constraints, Universal deemed it too expensive to shoot in the desert. Instead, the lightning scene was filmed on the Universal backlot and is shown in the final version.
24. The original ending of Snake Eyes (1998) featured a costly CGI sequence in which a tidal wave destroyed the Atlantic City boardwalk. However, test audiences reacted negatively to it. The director defended the original ending, stating, "When dealing with corruption, you need God to come down and blow it all away."
25. George Lucas considered an alternative ending for Return of the Jedi in which Luke turns to the dark side. He would have donned Vader's mask and proclaimed, "Now I am Vader. Now I will go and kill the [Rebel] fleet, and I will rule the universe."
