10 More Movie Storylines Actors REFUSED To Do
1. Brad Pitt Fought for a Jawdropping Climax - Se7en
In Se7en, Detective Mills (Brad Pitt) and Somerset (Morgan Freeman) are tasked with capturing a serial killer who murders people that represent The Seven Deadly Sins.
David Fincher's groundbreaking thriller is renowned for its disturbing subject matter and brutal violence, especially in the last few minutes. After the killer, John Doe (Kevin Spacey) turns himself in, he takes the detectives to a remote location, claiming they'll find the last two victims, who represent Envy and Wrath.
When a package for Mills is delivered, the detectives suspect Doe has something up his sleeve. Opening the box, Somerset sees it contains the head of Mills' pregnant wife, Tracy. Doe explains how he killed Tracy out of Envy, and hopes Mills will murder him in turn, becoming Wrath. Despite Somerset's best efforts to talk his partner down, Mills shoots Doe dead, giving him exactly what he wants.
As hard as it is to believe, this iconic climax would've never come to be if not for Brad Pitt's intervention. In an interview with EW, Pitt explained how the studio fought for a conventional conclusion where Tracy survives and Mills refuses to kill Doe.
There was another sequence storyboarded, where Somerset executed Doe to stop Mills from throwing away his career. (Interestingly, Morgan Freeman supported this idea.) However, Pitt stuck to his guns, saying the original outcome should be left alone.
Thankfully, the executives agreed not to reshoot the scene. If they did, moviegoers would've missed out on one of the most shocking endings in cinema.