IMDb Polls

Poll: Alternate Movie Endings

These films had another idea on how to end their stories, though we never had the luxury of seeing them. Which of these alternate movie endings would you have been most intrigued to see?

Discuss your favorite alternate movie ending here.

Make Your Choice

  1. Vote!
     

    Alien (1979)

    in Ridley Scott’s original vision, Ripley would make good her escape from the exploding Nostromo, only for the xenomorph to reappear on her shuttle, bite her head off, and start communicating with Earth using her voice. Yes, you’ve read that correctly.
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    Se7en (1995)

    A scene that was storyboarded but never shot, the alternate ending of Se7en, would have Morgan Freeman’s Somerset kill John Doe instead of Brad Pitt’s Mills. Choosing the original ending helped capture the sheer anguish Mills felt and helped make Se7en one of the best thrillers ever made.
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    Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

    Instead of bittersweet and poignant [George Lucas] wanted a euphoric ending with everybody happy. The original idea was that they would recover [the kidnapped] Han Solo in the early part of the story and that he would then die in the middle part of the film in a raid on an Imperial base. George then decided he didn’t want any of the principals killed.
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    The Terminator (1984)

    The alternate ending would feature a group of company suits hiding the Terminator remains from the police during the clean-up at the factory. The film would then end by showing the camera panning out from the factory to show it was owned by none other than Cyberdyne Systems.
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    I Am Legend (2007)

    Instead of Neville blowing himself and the hemocytes up with a grenade, we would see the Darkseekers break into Neville's lab because they were looking for the female Darkseeker he has been experimenting on. Once Neville realizes this and gives the female back, the rest of the mob backs off and Neville realizes that the infected just see him as a murderer of their kind.
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    2012 (2009)

    In the original version, it was made clear that the entire African continent was spared the global flooding, and now the ark’s built and populated by the world’s elite are now on their way there to forcibly conquer and take over. And while its not explicit spelled out, there’s no other conclusion you could possibly derive from this ending…
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    Thelma & Louise (1991)

    The iconic finale for this film was nearly ruined by showing just a little too much. Instead of their death dive off the cliff being cut off in glorious flight, we would have been treated to car crash down the mountain in a fiery blaze, confirming their deaths. It’s much better the way it is now, with the iconography of flight and freedom.
  8. Vote!
     

    Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

    The ending we were treated to was Butch and Sundance leaving the house with guns a'blazing, as we hear the return fire, though we don't actually see anyone die. This left us in a slight state of ambiguity, as opposed to the original ending where Paul Newman and Robert Redford would get to flaunt their acting chops on a gruesome death scene.
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    Titanic (1997)

    Instead of Aged Rose quietly dropping her priceless Heart of the Ocean bauble into the abyss, the original ending had her giving a seriously cheesy speech about life being the only thing that’s priceless. Then she'd launch her priceless emerald overboard as Bill Paxton laughs maniacally, flashing some dangerously crazy eyes.
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    The Butterfly Effect (2004)

    The "director's cut" alternate ending shows Evan turning on the home movies, only this time instead of watching a home movie at a neighborhood gathering, he's watching the video of his own birth. He travels back to when he is about to be born and commits suicide by strangling himself with his own umbilical cord. This way, he would never change the timeline in the first place, which would explain Evan's mother still having two children born before him.
  11. Vote!
     

    Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

    The film would end with a giant custard pie fight in the war room. It would also featuree Dr Strangelove wriggling around on the floor, before unsuccessfully attempting to shoot himself, then suggesting that the US President and the Russian Ambassador (who have stopped throwing pies in order to build sandcastles) should be institutionalized.
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    The Descent (2005)

    Sarah apparently escapes from the evil cavern and makes it to her car, before it is revealed that she is, in fact, hallucinating, and is doomed to stay trapped within its terrifying confines. A truly bleak ending, but brilliantly dramatic and haunting.
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    The Birds (1963)

    The original script had called for the final shot to show the Golden Gate Bridge completely covered in feathered foes. The scene, however, was scrapped when it became clear how expensive it would be to create.
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    Orphan (2009)

    The action stops after Kate's rescue of Max. Esther runs up to her room, reapplies her makeup then, when the police arrive, she appears at the top of the steps, calmly introducing herself and curtseying, before walking slowly down. This is altogether more subtle and creepy than the Hollywood-style 'bad guy finally getting their comeuppance' ending of the original, and leaves open the possibility that Esther could charm her way out of accusations and life to fight another day
  15. Vote!
     

    28 Days Later (2002)

    Instead of Jim being saved, he dies on the operating table. Distraught, the two have no choice but to arm themselves again and walk out through swinging hospital doors into the unknown. Boyle intended to imply the two characters' survival, but test audiences thought the opposite: that they were walking to their deaths.
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    Rocky (1976)

    Stallone’s original screenplay had Rocky accepting money to throw the fight against Apollo Creed—who would have, for some reason, been Jamaican. Rocky would then proceed to use the cash to help Adrian open a pet store. So... I guess he made the right call on the released ending.
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    Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

    Scott has now finally achieved his goal, through the course of events, he has realized that Knives is the one meant for him - especially given her help against Graves. It's a more 'traditional' ending, with a classic 'don't know what you've got until you've gone on a journey' story arc, but sometimes they're the most appropriate.
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    Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

    The 1986 version of this iconic movie-musical was supposed to end with Audrey II killing Audrey and Seymour and taking over New York City. That's in keeping with the off-Broadway ending, which is what the movie was based on.
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    Donnie Darko (2001)

    In the version, we watched Donnie wake up following his journey through the Tangent Universe before getting squashed by the jet engine in the Primary Universe. The alternate ending still sees him succumb to a similar fate, but we actually see the horror occur.
  20. Vote!
     

    The Lion King (1994)

    Scar still meets his much-deserved end, but he burns to death instead of being ripped to pieces by hyenas. During their big battle, Scar throws Simba off of a cliff, saying, “Goodnight, sweet prince.” However, Simba’s fall is broken by a tree, and Scar is engulfed by the flames.

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