We all know that the ending of the film was re-shot after Heather O'Rourke passed away in March 1988. And we know that she filmed an original ending during principal photography in late June, 1987. Lesser known is that a much more elaborate version of the original ending was scripted, but never shot. The following is an excerpt from an early draft of the script, dated January 23, 1987. This sequence would have clearly cost a lot of money to film, so it was toned down for the March 1987 shooting script.
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INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
Ice is starting to form on Bruce's face. He frantically attempts to wipe it away from his face and nostrils.
BRUCE
Donna!
(a beat)
Carol Anne!
Attempting to keep his eyes open against the storm, he searches. Bruce is startled as he collides with a solid object. He spins to look at it.
HIS POV-It is one of the white plaster statues from Pat's gallery, the one that turned and looked at her menacingly that morning.
ANGLE-BRUCE-At first he looks confused. After the constant assault, it is an almost comical relief seeing something familiar, albeit out of place, standing like a pillar of salt amidst the terrible wrath that has been unleashed. His half smile quickly disappears when the statue SLAMS! down its plaster hand on his arm, digging into his flesh. As it strengthens its grasp, the plaster cracks and splits open revealing an icy skeletal hand beneath.
ANGLE-STATUE-The plaster face glares at him.
ANGLE-BRUCE-He wrests his arm away, hefts the ax back and aims the butt of the handle squarely into the statue's face.
CLOSE ON FACE OF STATUE-CRACK! The ax handle connects with the face, shattering the shell into dust.
ANGLE-BRUCE-His determined stare turns to shock.
HIS POV-The statue's face is now the face of KANE. It glares at him and lunges.
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat is being slammed from side to side as she holds on to the saftey line. She's finally pulled forward and down onto the floor of the rig as she struggles to hang on.
PATRICIA
Bruce!
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
Bruce struggles with Kane, a statue with a human head. The plaster body begin to crack, fracture as if it were bone, splitting under terrible pressure. Kane's icy hands rip and tear at Bruce as he struggles to gain distance and a swinging grip to the ax. The long icy nails shred Bruce's clothing as Bruce hefts back the ax and carries through with a warrior's swing.
CLOSE ON-KANE-The ax connects with Kane's neck, but rather than slicing through, Kane's neck shatters like dry plaster. The head flies off SCREAMING!; whisked away by the howling wind, which absorbs the terrible disembodied scream.
ANGLE-BRUCE-He stares off into the direction of the flying head. Shock turns to terror as the SOUND OF THE SCREAMING HEAD builds over the howl of the wind.
HIS POV-The disembodied head flies out of the storm, its teeth bared, a fierce baboon like creature. Razor sharp incisors burst from gumless bone. They snap! onto Bruce's shoulder.
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Bruce's cries of pain can almost be heard amid the howling wind as Pat fights to her feet, the rope pulling her about the rig, slamming her against the building, against the back of the rig. CAMERA MOVES IN ON HER HANDS slowly losing her grip on the rope.
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
Bruce is slowly being covered with frost, his wet clothes going rigid, as he struggles with the head. He's losing strength, his fingers becoming numb, losing their grip on the ax, which is now ice-encrusted. He strikes the head again! Again! The head is gnawing its way up his arm to his shoulder, slowly feasting its way to his neck and a vulnerable artery. He hefts the ax back and swings again with the butt at the face. The head of Kane seems to welcome each blow as a mark of Bruce's futility. The icy ax slips from Bruce's grasp. He almost loses the necklace, but catches it as the ax is carried away by the internal storm. Bruce begins slamming his fist at the head as its powerful jaws clamp and climb their way up his torso. Suddenly, Bruce bashes the face with both hands. The head doesn't seem fazed except when Bruce strikes with the hand holding Tangina's necklace. The clamped jaws begin losing their grip. Bruce pulls back and continues his flurry of blows. But his frozen fingers begin to lose their grip on the necklace, his hands tremble, allowing the head to get a firm grasp once again on his shouder. Just as the head is about to snap its incisors down on Bruce's throat, he smashes the front of the face with the necklace.
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CONTINUED:
The face reacts to the touch of the necklace. Bruce struggles to hold onto the necklace, his frozen fingers not responding to their commands. He smashes the face again! Again! With one more final desperate blow Bruce pounds the necklace against Kane's face. The head shudders. Bruce pulls his useless fingers back from Kane's face. The necklace seems partially embedded in the head, but suddenly, like a snake retracting its tongue, the necklace is sucked back into Kane's eye socket. Its mouth flies open emitting A TERRIBLE SCREAM! as the head jettisons backward away from Bruce.
ANGLE-THE HEAD-The head is propelled through the storm at a tremoundous speed on a collision course with its mirror image. The images collide! CRASH! The mirror explodes!
ANGLE-BRUCE-The explosion knocks Bruce to the floor.
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat is slammed back against the saftey railing. The rig shakes and quivers. The icy wind blasts out catching Pat and pinning her against the saftey railing. Ice begins to cover her, draining her of strength and attempting to knock her free of the rig. The rig begins to tremble and vibrate as Pat struggles to hold onto the rope.
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
Bruce almost devoid of strength, frozen, faltering tries to stand amid the tremoundous wind, but he is being pelted by debris and objects that have caused a dangerous whirlwind. Bruce looks back toward the source of the wind. His nearly frozen face drops in disbelief.
HIS POV-A FLASH OF RED collides with him, knocking him to the ground. He turns to see Carol Anne, her eyes frozen shut, her lips barely moving. He throws his arm around her as debris continues to swirl about them.
ANGLE-ANOTHER HUGE OBJECT FLIES TOWARD HIM. It slams into him, frozen arms reaching to hold on. It's Donna. Her SCREAMS! hardly audible over the building storm. With barely enough time to thrust his arms around his daughter, another object slams into him, holding on for dear life. It is Scott. They are like attached sculptures, frosting over as the ice begins to build on their bodies.
BRUCE
Hold on! Hold on!
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EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat suddenly crashes back against the safety railing, horrified by the sight in her hands. The tether is broken.
PATRICIA
No! No!
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
The melded mass of Bruce, Donna, Scott, and Carol Anne come flying through the fog, tossed about in the storm. Slaming into a wall and sliding along the icy floor. Ice rapidly builds up on them as they finally collide with a corner of the room and stop. A SHRIEK! cuts through the howling wind. They look up.
THEIR POV-Through the raging fog, an enourmous icy sculpture of a face begins to push through. It is KANE. His face the essence of pure evil. The foul, decomposing champion in this war between life and death, one eye socket sunken, devoid of an eye, oozes with an icy flow. His mouth opens like that of an enourmous jungle cat, hissing out an evil wind.
ANGLE-BRUCE, DONNA, SCOTT, CAROL ANNE-The wind pins them back, covering them with a deadly frozen ice, draining them of life, reducing them to a frozen sculpture.
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat holds on to the trembling rig as she fights the icy wind and attempts to lengthen her safety cable.
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
CLOSE ON KANE-He hisses out his foul, cold breath.
ANGLE-BRUCE, DONNA, SCOTT, CAROL ANNE-The last ounce of life drains out of them. They have become a hideous ice sculpture. THE CAMERA MOVES IN ON THEM until Bruce's face fills the frame. The intense cold begins to crack it. Fractures lines radiate across it. His face shatters! TANGINA'S FACE EMERGES FROM WITHIN. Tangina stares up into the enourmous face.
TANGINA
You need me, Kane! Not them! I'll guide you! I can lead you into the light!
ANGLE-KANE-He roars!
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat has just unclipped her safety belt as the roar surrounds her. She swings her eyes toward the storm. She stares at something and gasps.
HER POV-Bruce's arm extends out from within the storm, reaching out to her.
ANGLE-PAT-She's confused, unable to decide what to do.
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
CLOSE ON TANGINA-Her arm extended, her hand disappearing into the mist.
TANGINA
Take my hand!
EXT. WINDOW WASHING RIG-NIGHT
Pat his holding back, not knowing what to do.
BRUCE (O.S.)
Take my hand!
CLOSE ON HANDS-They touch. Bruce's hands clasp onto Pat and pulls her straight into the storm. As she disappears there is a burst! of incredible light. A catastrophic violent surge blasts! through the window sending energy swirling up through the clouds. Its dissemination creating prismatic beams which shoot up into the sky, dissipating, absorbed into the vast dark expanse.
INT. CAROL ANNE'S BEDROOM-GARDNER APARTMENT-NIGHT
The room is a sea of swirling white mixed with debris, but the storm is quickly dissipating as visibility returns. THE CAMERA MOVES IN ON BRUCE, PATRICIA, DONNA, CAROL ANNE, AND SCOTT. Their arms intertwined around each other. The five of them together in a family embrace sharing tears of joy and relief. Bruce has his arms around the whole group, tears choking him. He turns his head. His eyes lock on something.
HIS POV-In an unbroken window is the reflection of the whole group, but amid them stands Tangina. She smiles into CAMERA as her hands caress Donna and Carol Anne's heads. She lifts one hand to her necklace and rubs it as she continues to smile into CAMERA.
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REVERSE ANGLE - Bruce stares straight at camera returning Tangina's smile.
ANGLE -WINDOW - Tangina is no longer in the reflection, all that remains is a family together and safe. CAMERA MOVES IN ON WINDOW AS FOCUS SHIFTS TO THE SUN COMING UP OVER LAKE MICHIGAN, it's cleansing light wiping out the nightmare that claimed a special life, a life sacrificed to save a family.