Twisters director Lee Isaac Chung has explained why he didn’t opt for the ending where Glen Powell‘s Tyler and Daisy Edgar-Jones‘ Kate share a passionate kiss (to the audience’s dismay).
The natural disaster blockbuster had an estimated domestic opening of $80.5 million at the North American box office, making it the third-biggest start of the year behind Inside Out 2 and Dune: Part Two.
Fans have lauded the chemistry between male star Powell and Edgar-Jones in the tornado tale, whose characters bond over their love – and fear – of disastrous weather in the rural depths of Oklahoma. But in the final scene, as they reunite before Kate bids farewell at the airport, the pair decidedly walk away together.
Footage has since emerged on social media of the two stars filming an alternate ending where they do kiss, with social media users befuddled at its omittance from the final cut. But Chung stands by his decision: “I feel like audiences are in a different place now in terms of wanting a kiss or not wanting a kiss,” the director told Entertainment Weekly. “I actually tried the kiss, and it was very polarizing — and it’s not because of their performance of the kiss.”
“This [no-kiss shot] was the other option that I had filmed on the day, and I got to say, I like it better,” he continued. “I think it’s a better ending. And I think that people who want a kiss within it, they can probably assume that these guys will kiss someday. And maybe we can give them privacy for that. In a way, this ending is a means to make sure that we really wrap things up with it in a celebratory, good way. If it ends on the kiss, then it makes it seem as though that’s what Kate’s journey was all about, to end up with a kiss. But instead, it’s better that it ends with her being able to continue doing what she’s doing with a smile on her face.”
Edgar-Jones described ending with the no-kiss as “nice and refreshing”. “What you’re ending it on is two individuals who are so equal in their love and interest and intelligence and understanding of weather,” the British actress said. Though Powell didn’t take the decision as well as his co-star: “I’m taking a little offense that they didn’t want to use it. Maybe it’s just my abilities, I don’t know,” the actor joked.
