Verity's Darker Original Ending Killed by Focus Groups — SkimNews
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- Michael Showalter revealed the original "dark phoenix" ending had Lowen putting on sunglasses with a villainous smirk while Verity's eyes opened underwater, revealing both women still alive and Lowen as the true mastermind.
- Focus group screenings mixing book readers and non-readers consistently told the filmmakers audiences wanted Lowen left in uncertainty — not the confident "I don't give a shit" moment — with Showalter concluding, "the audience is Lowen."
- The final ending shows pregnant Lowen and Jeremy driving off together as she ponders whether Verity's manuscript was truth or fiction, deciding the truth will remain a mystery.
- Colleen Hoover, who consulted on the film and authored the source novel, said she "couldn't be happier" with the final ending, saying it matches the emotional takeaway of the book.
- Verity sharply divided critics over its ending — Variety's own review called it a "flat-footed dud" — yet the film is still predicted to win the box office weekend, becoming Hathaway's third No. 1 movie this year.
- Showalter said the team tested "a hundred million different ways" to end the film and that cracking the finale was "the biggest challenge and the last thing that we did."
Why it matters: Focus group testing overrode the filmmakers' preferred twist — a rare case where test audiences pushed a studio toward ambiguity over a "gotcha" reveal. The decision also satisfied Colleen Hoover, preserving the novel's emotional resonance despite critics savaging the result and the film still heading for a No. 1 opening.
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