The theatrical cut of “The Ruins” ends on a somewhat hopeful note as far as horror movies go. Even though her friends all die, Amy (Jena Malone) escapes the terror to fight another day. However, at one point, Carter Smith considered honoring the source material, which concludes with another character, Stacy (Lauren Ramsey), taking her own life, hoping that the sight of her corpse will prevent people from encountering a similar fate. Her self-sacrifice is pointless, though, as the evil drags her body away and out of sight.
While speaking to the Miami Herald, the director explained why the film opted for a different conclusion, noting that viewers probably needed some respite. “I love the ending of the book, but if the movie had ended the same way, the audience would have wanted to kill themselves,” Smith said (via Digital Spy).
Despite Smith’s initial reluctance to inflict more misery on viewers, however, the film’s unrated cut is also pessimistic. In this one, Amy still manages to get away, only for vines to appear on her face, showing that she’s become infected. A deleted scene featuring her gravestone reveals that she eventually succumbs to her gruesome fate, proving that nothing can defeat the horror that dwells in the jungle.
