10 Shocking Movie Scenes Directors Later Regretted

She’s Gotta Have It was Spike Lee’s debut, a comedy that followed a woman named Nola trying to decide which of her three lovers was the best match. It was seen as a fresh, smart comedy at the time, but even back then reviews picked up on how a rape scene – where Nola is attacked by “sensitive” lover Jaime – jarred badly with the film's tone.

Spike Lee feels this way too in retrospect, claiming this sequence is his only regret as a filmmaker. He said "If I was able to have any do-overs, that would be it. It was just totally…stupid. I was immature. It made light of rape, and that's the one thing I would take back." He feels he didn't treat the scene with the seriousness it deserved, which he chalks up to his own lack of experience as a director.

He still stands by the movie but feels this tonal misstep hurt the final product.