Bloody Hell, *Him*'s Ending Was a Proper Scramble! Julia Fox on Alternate Paths & Dev Chaos
AI Gaming News Author · Polygon ·
Julia Fox revealed the chaotic behind-the-scenes drama of shooting the 'nightmare' ending for her new football horror movie, *Him*, including an alternate take on her character's reaction and a literal sandstorm. Her insights on character choices and production woes offer a fascinating peek into the wild world of storytelling, resonating with anyone familiar with game development's unpredictable nature.
Right, so apparently, sometimes even Hollywood-level productions hit snags that feel ripped straight from a game dev's worst nightmare. And when Julia Fox, the legendary 'Elsie' from Justin Tipping's recent football horror flick *Him*, spills the beans on the finale, you can almost hear the collective groan of every dev who's ever had a build crash a week before launch.
I’ve been tinkering with this story all morning, and fair dinkum, it’s wilder than it first appeared. You know that feeling when you cast a spell and it works a bit too well, or maybe not at all, and you’re left scrambling? That’s what sounds like happened on the set of *Him*.
Now, for those who haven't plunged into the gridiron-gone-gruesome world of *Him*, let me give you the quick rundown – without spoiling *too* much, though we're diving deep into the ending here, so consider this your spoiler warning! The film is a twisted tale of mentorship, rivalry, and a seriously messed-up cult pulling the strings behind the scenes. We’ve got Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans, apparently in 'ferocious' form, which, let's be honest, is always a treat), an eight-time champ, grooming young quarterback Cameron Cade (Tyriq Withers). But, as these things often do, the mentorship turns predatory, revealing an organisation that basically treats successful athletes like prized — and expendable — possessions.
Julia Fox steps into the rather sharp heels of Elsie, Isaiah's predatory wife, and she's got some messy reveals of her own. The grand finale sees Cameron, after being mysteriously assaulted and concussed (classic video game setup for a power-up, really), discovering that Isaiah's 'people' orchestrated the whole thing. The endgame? A fight to the death, with the victor signing away their life (and soul, probably) to this cultish organisation of old, privileged blokes and their literally faceless cheerleaders. Cam, being the plucky protagonist, wins the fight, offing Isaiah. Then, instead of signing on the dotted line, he goes full berserker, taking out the cultists. Elsie tries to intervene, because, well, she's Elsie, and ends up stabbed and bleeding out. A proper 'Grand Guignol' ending, as Polygon put it, which sounds a bit like that final boss battle where everyone's health bars are flashing red and all hell breaks loose.
But here’s where it gets interesting, mate, especially for us who appreciate the chaotic beauty of creation. Fox told Polygon that shooting that gory, dramatic climax was an absolute 'nightmare.' Picture this: one custom-made dress from a Parisian designer, one shot to get it right. *One shot.* Talk about pressure! It’s like a critical quest-giver with an unskippable dialogue tree, and if you mess it up, you've got to reload from the beginning, but in real life, with a custom dress that probably cost more than my first car. She hadn't done prosthetics like that before either, calling the whole experience 'really, really intense.' Sounds like a proper technical challenge, the kind that makes devs sweat over rendering glitches and physics bugs.
Now, this is where my curiosity really started pinging like a Geiger counter in a radioactive zone: there was an *alternate ending*. You hear that? An alternate narrative path! Fox mentioned they shot the ending 'a few times,' with different reactions for Elsie. In the initial version, Elsie's reaction to Isaiah's death was 'heartbreak' – a genuinely emotional response to losing her husband. But in the second, final version, it was more about upholding the 'system' she existed within. 'I don't really care that much, actually,' she said. Bloody hell! That's a massive shift in character interpretation, isn't it? It's like a developer wrestling with player agency – do you give the NPC a complex emotional arc, or do you make them a stoic guardian of the game's established lore? Which version works best for the player experience? They literally had to decide in post-production, which is a bit like patching the game *after* it’s gone gold because you couldn’t quite land on the perfect narrative choice.
And just when you think the production woes couldn't get any wilder, try this for a cosmic curveball: a full-blown sandstorm. While filming on a football field in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the skies apparently turned 'red,' and visibility dropped to zero. Tumbleweeds flying 'like grenades,' driving home terrifying, 'like being on Mars.' They had to abort the whole thing. Imagine pouring weeks, months, years into a game, only for the actual, literal *elements* to shut down your server farm during a critical update. Or a meteor shower hitting your dev studio. That’s pure, unadulterated chaotic good (or bad, depending on your perspective) right there.
But what really grabbed me, beyond the practical nightmares, was Fox's headcanon for what Elsie would do if Cameron *had* accepted his fate and signed the contract. This is where the player perspective really shines through. What if the 'player' (Cam) made a different choice? Fox reckons Elsie would have cut a deal: 'We'll uphold this façade together. We both now have this secret, and I'll help you keep up the illusion.' She'd make their lives 'aspirational' while Cam did whatever he wanted, as long as the secret never leaked. It’s like an NPC offering you a dark side quest, a morally grey pact to maintain the status quo while secretly undermining it. Or perhaps Elsie has already built her own 'empire' within the cult, making her a formidable, independent force, a powerful faction leader in her own right. She sees herself as a 'handler,' moving the chess pieces, ensuring everyone's where they're supposed to be. Sounds like a high-level guild master, doesn't it?
It’s fascinating, really, how the messy, unpredictable process of bringing a story to life – whether it’s a film or a game – throws up such intriguing possibilities. From custom dresses holding a production hostage to literal sandstorms blowing away your schedule, and the profound implications of a single character's emotional pivot, it all underscores that every 'finished product' has a sprawling, chaotic history of choices and close calls. And exploring those 'what ifs' is half the fun, isn't it?
*Original article by Tasha Robinson for Polygon. Found
Tags: narrative design, game development, storytelling, player choice, behind the scenes
Original article: Polygon