12 Alternative Horror Movie Endings You Didn't See
9. Alex Kills Herself - Fatal Attraction (1987)
Can we make through this entry without mentioning rabbits? Could be tricky.
Anyway, Fatal Attraction, soon to be reimagined as a series, is a 1987 thriller starring Michael Douglas and Glenn Close depicting an illicit and ultimately dangerous affair. So far, so regrettably normal but when Dan's (Douglas) family become targets of Alex's (Close) unhinged obsession, the stakes are raised to homicidal levels.
The theatrical ending has a domestic physical showdown that concludes with Alex being shot by Beth, Dan's unbelievably (and fortunately) loyal wife. There's a classic 'is she really dead?' moment as Alex springs back to life before being gunned down in the bathroom.
The alternate ending, as one would expect, while perhaps robbing Dan's suffering family (and the audience) of some much needed catharsis, does change the overall tone to something much more sympathetic: Dan receives a visit from the police as Alex has committed suicide, slitting her own throat with the kitchen knife, seen in an additional sequence.
Beth then finds a cassette recording from Alex in which she threatens to take her own life, effectively providing Dan with a legal defence against the inevitable murder charge.
The alternative closing shot is of Alex, in flashback, placing the blade to her throat, all set to the sound of Madame Butterfly, lending this cut the feel of early Coppola work. The film's legacy would no doubt have remained intact though, due in large part to the fact that Alex LITERALLY BOILS THE FAMILY BUNNY. Dammit...