# Anyone else remember the alternate ending to "Big"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 16, 2002, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864 "2002-04-16T02:03:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/241 "2014-09-07T22:39:43Z")
BTW, still no replies to my inquiries. Nobody listen to Zathras. It might be worth finding that scene in the other movie and posting it… ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/242 "2014-09-07T22:54:03Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > BTW, still no replies to my inquiries. > > Nobody listen to Zathras. You may have better luck trying to contact the lesser-known actors & crew. [David Moscow,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Moscow) for example, who played the kid. He even has a Facebook page. Heck, even Elizabeth Perkins’ career has been fairly idle recently, ever since _Weeds_ was cancelled. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/243 "2014-09-08T03:24:09Z")
Ending of _14 Going on 30._ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/6783tkwbZw0/hqdefault.jpg "Re: 14 going on 30 - PART-9 Final") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6783tkwbZw0) ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/244 "2014-09-08T03:53:29Z")
> [@Cakecrumbs](#): > > My 14 year old daughter has just backed me up by agreeing about another ending so wondering if it does really exist! Nope. And asking somebody who wasn’t even alive when the movie was initially released is probably not the best idea. It actually leads more credence to the idea that this “alternate ending” is a different movie getting mixed with this one. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/245 "2014-09-08T04:21:33Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > Not quite as striking, but along the same lines (memory being much more a construct than a recording) is the following fact. I spent two weeks in Ireland, and did a lot of driving while there. I drove a car with the steering wheel on the right side, and I drove on the left side. I know this to be true because–it was Ireland. I couldn’t possibly have driven in any other way. > > Yet as I recall my trip, I _cannot_ remember driving on the left side with myself on the right side of the car. My memories–and they are very clear!–are of driving on the right side with the steering wheel on the left of the car. These are completely vivid memories. If I’d forgotten about the laws for driving in Ireland for some reason, I’d swear to you, with money on the line, without reservation, that I drove in Ireland in exactly the same way I drive here in the US. The memories are just that stark. > > We make our memories, we don’t record them. My brain has so little experience with left-side driving that, when it’s thinking about my Ireland trip, it just supplies what it _does_ know: right-side driving. This is a fascinating anecdote. ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/246 "2014-09-08T05:38:29Z")
This is my favourite zombie. ---
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/247 "2014-09-08T06:31:24Z")
Wow! What a bizarre thread this is. I just spent about a half hour trying to page through all the years and see if this was ever resolved, and it appears not to have been. I am 100% positive that the first time I saw “Big”, it had the ending that is being discussed. I am also 100% positive I am not conflating it with “14 Going on 30”, a movie which I had never even _heard_ of before I read this thread. No, “Big” was shown in the U.S. with the ending where she changes herself into a young girl at the end. It was a wonderful ending. It was a redemption for her and a chance to live her life over again and not make the poor choices that she had ended up regretting. I have a very distinct memory of again seeing the movie on television, and being dumbfounded that they would cut out the final scene, which to me was the best part of the movie. Until I saw this thread, I had no idea that the cut version was considered to be the “normal” ending. I had assumed some idiot television editor had done it. This is kind of blowing my mind, because it’s almost not even the same movie without that final scene. And let me remind those who say there’s “no evidence” for the scene of something. You may recall the “rumor” of the “in the ass” comment that aired on The Newlywed Game, which Snopes swore up and down was a myth… until a clip surfaced and aired on Comedy Central. The fact that you can’t easily find a clip of something on You Tube doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/248 "2014-09-08T07:22:01Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > I am 100% positive… Don’t you mean, you’re 99.999…% positive? [d&r] ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 8:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/249 "2014-09-08T08:39:27Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > I am not conflating it with “14 Going on 30”, a movie which I had never even _heard_ of before I read this thread. Did you watch the clip? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/250 "2014-09-08T12:30:27Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > No, “Big” was shown in the U.S. with the ending where she changes herself into a young girl at the end. It was a wonderful ending. It was a redemption for her and a chance to live her life over again and not make the poor choices that she had ended up regretting. Except it wasn’t. There are no reviews mentioning it, none of the people involved in the movie have mentioned it, actors in the movie have specifically denied it. You would have us believe that there has never been a mention of it on any of the commentary at the time or since? It’s just not plausible, or even possible. There wasn’t an alternative ending shot. You’re simply confusing it with another similar movie that was released at a similar time with a similar theme. It happens all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Sterling\_Archer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Sterling\_Archer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sterling_Archer)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/251 "2014-09-08T13:11:46Z")
I am with the dissenters. I remember a young Susan coming to Josh’s class at the end of Big and it was NOT the same as the “14 going on 30” clip. That doesn’t match my memory of that scene at all. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/252 "2014-09-08T14:12:43Z")
> [@Sterling\_Archer](#): > > I am with the dissenters. I remember a young Susan coming to Josh’s class at the end of Big and it was NOT the same as the “14 going on 30” clip. That doesn’t match my memory of that scene at all. Describe the scene you believe you saw. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/253 "2014-09-08T14:30:03Z")
It’s occurred to me that the “alternate ending” is a case of mass delusion brought on by wishful thinking. It’s a powerful movie, emotionally, and the ending has the same wistful what-if pathos as _Witness_. I can remember, several years after I first saw the movie, having a sense that she did show up again at the end… because we really \*want \*her to. I think it’s meant to be one of the post-ending possibilities, and some of us choose to add up the story pointers that way. The film’s all the more moving and memorably because we don’t know what’s next in Josh’s life; there is no neat conclusion or end to the story. That, plus the similar ending of _14/30_… and there’s no real mystery. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/254 "2014-09-08T14:32:34Z")
Obviously, this topic is proof that the Multiverse theory is correct. Somewhere out there is an alternate universe where \*Big \*and _14 Going on 30_ are in fact the same movie…and somehow some people have been accidentally transported here from their ‘home dimension’. I can only imagine the horror being experienced by their counterparts who were swept from their homes here in our dimension, and are now cursed to spending the rest of their lives wondering where Tom Hanks got that Van Dyke beard. ---
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/255 "2014-09-08T19:05:25Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Did you watch the clip? Yes. That cage thing with the lighting bolts flowing over it and the nerdy kid with the glasses and sportcoat look completely alien to me - like I movie I have never seen nor ever heard of before. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/256 "2014-09-08T19:10:02Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > Yes. That cage thing with the lighting bolts flowing over it and the nerdy kid with the glasses and sportcoat look completely alien to me - like I movie I have never seen nor ever heard of before. What about the classroom scene? ---
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/257 "2014-09-08T19:15:33Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Except it wasn’t. There are no reviews mentioning it, Reviewers tend to not spoil the ending of a movie, so first of all, it’s unlikely you would find such a review, and second, even if such a review exists, the fact that YOU have not found it does not mean it doesn’t exist. > [@](#): > > none of the people involved in the movie have mentioned it, actors in the movie have specifically denied it. Do you have a cite for that? I would be interested in seeing those interviews. Also, don’t forget that Bob Eubanks specifically denied the “in the ass” incident, even though it later turned out to be true, and he was right there when it happened. > [@](#): > > You would have us believe that there has never been a mention of it on any of the commentary at the time or since? How do you know that’s the case? I am open to the possibility that it has never been mentioned in any commentary, but not just because _you_ say so. You are making a negative assertion, which is pretty hard to prove, but if you can, I’m willing to listen. > [@](#): > > It’s just not plausible, or even possible. There wasn’t an alternative ending shot. I don’t know how you can say that. Different endings are shot ALL THE TIME for movies, and movies get changed all the time. > [@](#): > > You’re simply confusing it with another similar movie that was released at a similar time with a similar theme. It happens all the time. As I said, it’s extremely unlikely that I could confuse it with a movie that I have never seen nor heard of before now. I agree it happens all the time, but that doesn’t prove it’s happening in this case. Were I the only person who remembered it, I would assume that my memory was somehow faulty. But since so many other people ALSO remember it, I suspect it is just another victim of the pre-YouTube era. ---
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/258 "2014-09-08T19:22:02Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > What about the classroom scene? In my memory, they did not hold hands in the scene I saw. Not the same at all. I guess my question at this point would be: Why is it impossible for you to believe that they shot two different endings? It’s a pretty common practice in Hollywood. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/259 "2014-09-08T19:26:39Z")
> [@Killing\_Time](#): > > Also, don’t forget that Bob Eubanks specifically denied the “in the ass” incident, even though it later turned out to be true, and he was right there when it happened. I imagine the “in the butt” was not admitted to because it was crass and embarrassing for the time period and for a risque, but family-friendly show. What could possibly be the motive to not admit to or talk about the alternative ending? It’s not a secret that people think this ending exists, so why all the hush-hush? ---
**Author:** ![Killing\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/76d3ee/32.png) [@Killing\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Killing_Time)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864/260 "2014-09-08T19:27:22Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > It’s occurred to me that the “alternate ending” is a case of mass delusion brought on by wishful thinking. It’s a powerful movie, emotionally, and the ending has the same wistful what-if pathos as _Witness_. I can remember, several years after I first saw the movie, having a sense that she did show up again at the end… because we really \*want \*her to. So you find it more likely that you are among a group of people suffering from mass delusion than they shot two endings and screened then in different markets? See, I find the _latter_ more believable than the former. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-remember-the-alternate-ending-to-big/103864.md?page=14)