10 Famous Movies Test Audiences Improved With Their Criticism

3. Sunset Boulevard

Director Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard is considered one of the greatest films ever made. However, it would not have received such high praise and three Oscars if it retained its original opening sequence. The film is narrated by the recently-deceased unsuccessful screenwriter Joe Gillis, played by William Holden. A test audience in Evanston, Illinois saw a preview cut that began with Gillis' body in a morgue and featured the corpses in the morgue talking about how they died. The audience thought that the talking corpses were hilarious and were subsequently confused when the film didn't follow through with that comedic tone. Two other test audiences in New York had similar reactions, which led to Wilder eliminating the scene entirely. The now-classic opening shows Gillis' body floating in a swimming pool instead... and his corpse certainly doesn't talk. But it's still fascinating how one poorly thought-out opening scene can alter the impact of an entire movie.