Studios go through three phases to make a movie: pre-production, which includes script approval, casting, crew assembly, and pre-production; A production that is essentially a shoot; and post-production, which includes editing, visual effects, and other finishing touches.
But first of all, the studios agree to shoot a certain number of scenes on a budget in a certain amount of time. However, what if the shoot is expensive and subsequently excluded from the final version of the film?
Although deletions occur in any audiovisual production, some are worth remembering simply because they cost the studio that produced them millions of dollars and because they featured an actor who did not end up appearing in the film, or because they contained a large visual effects. Here are five scenes compiled by our colleagues at AdoroCinema that fall into this category.
X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST
X-Men: Days of Future Past marked the return of many mutants from the previous trilogy, except for one: Rogue. Still, Anna Paquin spent a week shooting several scenes with her colleagues, but none made it into the final cut.
After complaints from fans – and presumably to justify the money spent on hiring the actor – Twentieth Century Fox released a longer version under the title. X-Men: Days of Future Past on DVD and Blu-ray. It includes an additional 17 minutes of deleted scenes featuring Malicia’s character (Rogue in VO).
Z
Warning, spoilers. The following text outlines the main plot of “World War Z” as well as its ending.
World War Z ends with Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) inventing “camouflage” – injecting himself with a deadly virus – to escape the zombies and finally be able to confront them. He’s with his family and all’s well that ends well. However, this ending was not the original.
In fact, Gerry and Segen (Daniela Kertesz) have to stop in Russia to fight the zombies, beating them up the old-fashioned way in an apotheotical scene. And after completing the quest, the main character had to return home. It is then revealed that his wife, Karin (Mireille Enos), has remained in the United States all this time and ended up working as a prostitute to support the family, eventually settling down with Gerry’s former colleague (Matthew Fox).
Because the studio wanted a happy ending, the entire third act of the film was rewritten and reshot. Thus, Matthew Fox’s scenes were almost completely cut. Not only did Paramount lose money on what had already been shot, but it cost about $25 million to make!
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In The Wizard of Oz (1939), Dorothy (Judy Garland), the Cowardly Lion (Burt Lary), the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger) and the Tin Man (Jack Hale) walk through a haunted forest and are attacked by magical insects. Which makes them sing and dance to the song “The Jitterbugs”, referencing a popular dance move from the 1940s.
The scene cost about $80,000 to film and took five weeks to shoot, but was cut during editing. There are three possible reasons: the film was too long, the dance “dated” a feature film that would no longer be timely, or the number was too optimistic for Haunted Forest. As such, the original footage was destroyed, but composer Harold Arlen’s homemade version was added during rehearsals as an extra on the film’s DVDs.
Superman returns
Superman Returns, directed by Bryan Singer, features Superman (Brandon Routh) returning to Earth after five years of disappearance. The original opening sequence was five minutes long and showed the hero visiting what was left of his home planet, Krypton.
Slow and contemplative, but visually stunning, the scene cost about $10 million. However, it wasn’t bombastic and exciting, maybe that’s why the producers cut it. Over five minutes of sequences to watch hereLater included as an extra on the Superman Anthology Blu-ray.
Back to the future
Michael J. Fox was always the first choice to play Marty McFly in the Back to the Future trilogy, but he was busy filming Sacred Family at the time (Bone connections). So the role was taken by Eric Stoltz, who spent four weeks filming with the group.
The problem is that Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemeckis and the writers thought Stoltz was too serious for comedy. The actor was eventually replaced by Michael J. Fox, a move that would add $3 million to the film’s budget and additional shooting time.
Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
