Talked to my uncle about that alternate ending to The Mist and it changed how I see the whole movie

Ngl I always thought the original ending of The Mist was brutal but fine. Then my uncle who worked at a video rental store back in 2007 told me about the alternate ending where everyone survives. He said test audiences hated it so they went with the dark one instead. Been thinking about that conversation for like a week now. The deleted scene is on YouTube if you search for it. Has anyone else seen both endings and had a total opinion flip like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

henderson.vera17d ago

Your uncle might have mixed up a couple of the alternate versions floating around. The one that's actually on the DVD extras has David killing his son and the others, then stepping out to get eaten by the monsters. It's even bleaker than what we got because there's no hope at all. That test screening version you're thinking of where everyone lives was apparently a storyboard idea that never got filmed. I watched that deleted scene a while back and it still hits me harder than the theatrical cut because of how completely hopeless it feels.

the_matthew17d ago

Nah the details are a bit off. The alternate ending wasn't a happy one where everyone lives. It was actually darker than what we got. In that version David kills his son and the others in the car, then gets out and gets eaten by the monster. Test audiences hated that even more. The official ending with the military rolling in right after was actually the studio's call. King even said he liked it better than his own book ending.

christopher_wells416d agoProlific Poster

Tbh I used to think the theatrical ending was the weak one but you guys are changing my mind. Never realized King himself actually preferred the studio version, that's wild. The darker alternate sounds brutal though, glad they didn't go with it.