Scrapped Plot Lines That Would Have Changed Your Favorite Movies Forever

Taxi Driver

Travis Bickle was originally going to cope with his disillusionment by getting really into cycling.

The Matrix

Neo, who had skipped lunch, wolfs down both the red and the blue pill, and an exasperated Morpheus figures it’d be best to just shoot him.

Rear Window

In the intended low-stakes plot line, Jimmy Stewart believes the neighbor he’s spying on is failing to disclose certain taxable income on his 1040.

Rocky

Stallone’s original script included his iconic boxer getting upper-cut and his head flying off and shooting into outer space.

Arrival Of A Train

In the early drafts of this silent film, the train actually comes out of the screen and kills the audience.

L’Avventura

Michelangelo Antonioni’s masterpiece was originally going to contain six more hours of characters silently staring off in the distance, contemplating their existential despair.

The Dark Knight Rises

The much-anticipated follow-up to The Dark Knight cut the origin scene where Bane watches 100 straight hours of Cookie Monster clips in order to explain his odd manner of speaking.

Promising Young Woman

An early draft of the screenplay included well-written sentences, logical plot developments, even tone, and a nuanced ending until someone at Focus Features opened a window and a stiff breeze blew it all into a nearby fireplace.

The Empire Strikes Back

Conflicting DNA tests leave Darth Vader unsure if he’s Luke Skywalker’s father, so he keeps his suspicions to himself until he’s gathered more evidence.

The Mask

Jim Carrey’s character wears a red hat instead of a yellow one.

Wizard Of Oz

Dorothy was originally supposed to meet two other characters—the Raven-Haired Man, who seeks judgment, and Jeff, a guy who wants a Swagtron Swagger 5 Elite electric scooter in the worst way—but their characters were dropped to streamline the film, although the Tin Man alludes to desiring a Swagtron Swagger 5 Elite electric scooter soon after Dorothy meets him in a nod to the dropped character.

Fight Club

Instead of being revealed to be the protagonist’s alter ego, Tyler Durden was going to be his nephew.

The Little Mermaid

Before she can even trade away her voice to Ursula, Ariel is caught in a trawling net and bisected, with her lower half producing 12 fish steaks valued at $14.99 a pound.

Mrs. Doubtfire

In the original draft of the screenplay, Robin Williams’ character Daniel Hillard kills his children and is forced to dress up as them in order to continue fooling his ex-wife.

Sully

After poor audience testing, the film was cut down to exclude a romantic subplot between the pilot and a widowed goose.