Tim Curry and director Jonathan Lynn reveal an interesting yet shocking alternative ending of Clue that was ruled out previously. Inspired by the popular board game, the film was released in 1985 and featured six guests who receive mysterious invitations to dinner at a New England mansion.
When their host is found dead, the guests must find out who killed him and used which weapon. Curry played the role of the butler Wadsworth in the film, along with a cast that consisted of Eileen Brennan, Christopher Lloyd, Madeline Kahn, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, and Lesley Ann Warren.
Clue originally had three different endings. But Curry reveals in his recent interview that there was initially another outcome in which Wadsworth was the culprit.
“It wasn’t funny enough. It wasn’t surprising enough. It ended the film on an anti-climax. So I just took it out. Three was enough.”
Wadsworth summarized Clue’s potential endings and was exposed as an FBI agent in two. Each guest was being extorted by their host, Mr. Boddy, giving all of them a reason.
But in one of those outcomes, Miss Scarlet (Warren) was the culprit, and in another, it was Mrs. Peacock (Brennan), both of whom were arrested. The third ending showed that almost everyone was responsible for a death that night and revealed that Wadsworth was the actual Mr. Boddy, while the man assumed to be their murderer was really his butler.
The ending of Clue that portrays Wadsworth as Mr. Boddy might have offered a better surprise than having him be the main killer because many clues hinted at him early on.
He not only knew about all the guests, but he was familiar with the mansion and its structure, including the secret passages. It is interesting to imagine what Clue could have been like if Wadsworth had been accountable for the murders.
However, Wadsworth being the culprit likely would’ve been a more predictable outcome, and it would be way less funny. It is just that it would be interesting to see how viewers might have reacted to seeing Curry’s character being the killer.
Clue’s different endings make it a distinctive murder mystery, but Lynn’s comments are also true. If the Wadsworth reveal did not match the wit of other outcomes and was not a shock, deleting that scene was perhaps the right decision.
About Clue
Clue is a 1985 American black comedy mystery film based on the board game of the same name. The film is directed by Jonathan Lynn, who co-wrote the script with John Landis, and produced by Debra Hill. It stars the ensemble cast of Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, and Colleen Camp.
Inspired by the nature of the board game, the film’s initial release featured various different endings, with one of three possibilities sent to each theater. The film initially received mixed reviews and did poorly at the box office, grossing $14.6 million in the United States against its budget of $15 million, but later developed a considerable cult following.
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