Very light spoilers, as director Denis Villeneueve has been discussing the ending of his thriller Prisoners, and how it ended up with the one it got.
When director Denis Villeneuve first made the jump to American movies, he does so with a thriller. A really good thriller, in fact, by the name of Prisoners. Hugh Jackman takes the lead in the 2013 film, and if you’ve not seen it, it’s well worth seeking out and having nobody tell you anything about it first.
Us included. If you’ve not seen it, it’s best to come back here when you have.
For Villeneuve has been chatting to legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins on his new podcast, and he’s revealed that he actually shot two endings for the film. As reported by IndieWire, he said that his experience making the film was a good one, and he didn’t feel bracketed by making a studio picture. In fact, as it turned out, the producers gave him the chance to shoot two endings on the condition that the one that tested the highest got used.
“It’s true”, Villeneuve admits. “They didn’t shape the edit, but there were two endings because they felt my idea, which was closer to the screenplay, was maybe too much depressing and not commercial enough”.
He added that “I remember we tested both, and they came to me saying they scored equally and that maybe mine was better so they went with mine. It was a beautiful experience”.
No spoilers as to the ending here. There’s more on all of this over at IndieWire.
And do seek the film out…
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