Many movies have alternate endings, but only some have become the stuff of legend (just look at Blade Runner). In the case of comic book movies, there are those you may be aware of and quite a few we're guessing you had no idea were scrapped.
In this feature, we're taking a look back at the most drastically different alternate endings which would have changed their respective adaptations for the better...or worse.
Some were changed to better set up the future, while others had to be cut because, quite honestly, they were terrible. The one thing they all have in common, though, is that each of the Marvel and DC movies below would have been vastly different had these been what we saw play out in theaters.
From The Amazing Spider-Man 2 to Iron Man 3, The Flash, and more, you can find out what might have been by clicking the "Next" button below.
7. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - Richard Parker Lives
An unbelievable amount of both The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 ended up on the cutting room floor, explaining why we never actually got to see the widely touted "Untold Story."
In the sequel's case, a subplot featuring Norman Osborn's severed head being kept in storage by Oscorp was scrapped, as was the movie originally ending with the return of Peter's father, Richard Parker. He'd have delivered Uncle Ben's "Great Power" line and encouraged his son to return his wall-crawling superheroics.
With The Amazing Spider-Man 3 set to revolve around a concoction which could raise the dead, we'd guess Richard was going to be a pivotal part of Peter's battle with the Green Goblin and the resurrection of Gwen Stacy. It sure would have been...something.
6. Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania - Kang Escapes
In an earlier cut of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne were going to don new, hi-tech costumes for the final battle with Kang the Conqueror.
Just like in the theatrical cut, Janet, Hank, Cassie, and Hope all returned to Earth, only for Scott to be confronted by a vengeful, battle-damaged Kang. They fight, but the villain escapes even after The Wasp returns to lend Ant-Man a helping hand. With that, they're left trapped in the Quantum Realm just as Janet once was.
Kang is then free to conquer the Multiverse, but we'd have seen Cassie running countless simulations across multiple computers, with her eyes going wide after she sees something. The screen would then cut to black, leaving us to wonder whether they were rescued and better setting the stage for the next Avengers movies.
5. The Wolverine - Wolverine's Classic Suit
The Wolverine ends with Logan, now wielding bone claws, returning to the U.S. alongside Yukio. However, an alternate ending saw her hand him a suitcase which, when opened, revealed the character's classic brown and yellow comic book costume.
Filmmaker James Mangold decided to cut the scene because he didn't want to force whoever helmed a possible sequel to include that suit. Ironically, he actually took charge of the follow-up with Logan, though Bryan Singer failed to give the character anything close to his classic suit in Days of Future Past and Apocalypse!
This would have been an awesome tease and a great way to set the stage for Wolverine to finally embrace his comic book roots. On a more positive note, we'll see an even better version of the suit in Deadpool 3 next year.
4. Iron Man 3 - Trevor Slattery Dies
Marvel Studios upset a lot of fans with Iron Man 3, a movie that ended by revealing The Mandarin was, in fact, an actor called Trevor Slattery. Employed by the "true" Mandarin, A.I.M.'s Aldrich Killian, he was a stooge and many didn't appreciate such a comedic spin on the iconic villain.
In a deleted scene from the threequel's closing moments, we were once going to see Slattery inject himself with "Extremis" and subsequently explode. It was a definitive, weird end for the character that was perhaps best left on the cutting room floor.
By not heading down that route, Marvel Studios was able to bring Trevor back for the "All Hail the King" one-shot and even Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (where we first met the real Mandarin, Wenwu). He's next expected to appear in Wonder Man.
3. The Marvels - The Heroes Team Up To Save The Day
The Marvels has failed to strike a chord with fans, somewhat explaining why it's likely to go down as Marvel Studios' biggest box office disappointment to date. Love or hate it, though, the ending certainly left us with plenty to discuss.
In the Captain Marvel sequel's closing moments, Monica Rambeau used her powers to close a tear in reality, stranding herself in a parallel universe inhabited by the X-Men. However, an earlier version of the movie saw Photon receive a helping hand from Carol Danvers and Ms. Marvel.
What we don't know - at least not yet - is whether this means Monica wasn't always going to head to another reality. In fact, it's possible this wasn't even that sort of tear, meaning the Multiverse aspect was later added to The Marvels to better tie it into this Saga.
2. Avengers: Age Of Ultron - Captain Marvel's Debut
Avengers: Age of Ultron was always going to end with Captain America and Black Widow assembling a new team of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. However, Joss Whedon hoped to introduce at least one major character in this sequence.
That was Captain Marvel and the stand-in above was used while Whedon attempted to figure out who could play her. Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige had other ideas, though, and later replaced Carol Danvers with the Scarlet Witch (much to the filmmaker's chagrin).
It would, in many ways, have been strange for Captain Marvel to debut here as it would have meant throwing her into the mix with no explanation or origin story. Still, we can't help but wonder how much different the MCU would have looked had it happened!
1. The Flash - Crisis On Infinite Earths
The Flash got caught up in a number of different regimes at Warner Bros., and that led to its ending changing more than once. The first idea was for Michael Keaton's Batman and Sasha Calle's Supergirl to show up in the DCEU, confronting a shocked Barry Allen.
After that cliffhanger, a post-credits scene would have seen Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne plead with the Scarlet Speedster for help, setting the stage for Crisis on Infinite Earths. Henry Cavill's eventual return led to Henry Cavill being added to that scene with Batman and Supergirl, with only the original Bruce now missing.
When DC Studios got involved, everything changed, and the two Multiversal heroes died. As for the ending, we watched as Barry met George Clooney's Caped Crusader in a world we presumably won't ever visit again. What a clusterf***.