Timothée Chalamet & Josh Safdie Might Have Loved Marty Supreme's Original Ending, But It's A Good Thing It Was Cut

The following contains spoilers for Marty SupremeMarty Supreme almost had a different ending that would have been a weaker overall beat. Marty Supreme follows Marty Mauser’s attempts to become the first table tennis star in the United States, with a dogged sense of determination that ends up causing a whole lot of chaos for anyone in his orbit.

Marty Supreme ends on a surprisingly emotional beat, with Marty overwhelmed by the sight of his newborn son. It’s a strong moment that was almost followed by a different beat, cutting to an older Marty and his granddaughter. The alternate ending was planned but ultimately not filmed — which was a blessing in disguise, as that ending would have been a weaker conclusion to the film.

Marty Supreme’s Original Ending, Explained

©A24/Courtesy Everett Collection

In the original conception of the film, Marty Supreme would have concluded with a time-jump to the 1980s. According to interviews given to Variety and IndieWire by director Josh Safdie and Timothée Chalamet, the film was originally going to conclude with a flashforward to the 1980s, with an older Marty at a Tears for Fears concert alongside his granddaughter.

The scene would have played over the credits, with the lyrics striking a chord with Marty and causing him to reflect on his youthful ambition and extreme drive. According to Chalamet, the scene was only cut because production ran out of time, despite the actor even going through the prosthetic process to transform him into an older-looking man.

It’s an interesting idea, and reflected in the film’s overall themes. It would have also put a new spin on the movie’s conclusion, suggesting the time-period sports comedy of errors was shaded by Marty’s memories and interpretation of how things played out. It also directly ties in Safdie’s fusion of the 1950s era with 1980s touches.

It would have been a unique way to highlight how Marty’s brush with greatness lingered with him, while also highlighting that his family remained a central part of his life going forward. It would have also felt unnecessary given the rest of the film around it, and would have undercut the power of the film’s actual conclusion.

Why Marty Supreme’s Actual Ending Is Better

The ending of Marty Supreme is strong enough as is, and would have felt far too literal for the movie leading up to it. By making the movie a series of memories instead of active events in Marty’s life, there would have been new questions of interpretation that detract from the chaos of the film.

The movie works better as a straightforward series of events, wild dominoes that fall into place in unexpected and surprisingly brutal ways. Ending with Marty’s granddaughter would have also raised a lot of questions, such as how Marty could have already had a granddaughter old enough to drag him to a concert within 30 years of the film’s events.

Part of what makes the ending of Marty Supreme so effective is the way he is finally forced to confront someone he values just as much as himself, a far cry from the selfish actions that define the film. That ending being the birth also gives the film a direct bookend to his conception in the film’s opening.

It also gives Marty’s tearful look towards his newborn son a power that might have been lost otherwise in an ending more focused on being a flashforward. It leaves a touch of ambiguity to Marty’s future, instead of showing him with a granddaughter (and naturally implying he remained a family man for the intervening years).

The song choice of “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” fits the tone and the atypical soundtrack choices that score much of the film, but the flashforward feels unnecessary. It also takes away from the burst of adrenaline and action that defines much of the film. Marty Supreme‘s ending didn’t need the self-reflection that comes with the flashforward.

Marty works better as a character who is never looking back — which means something very different when he’s overwhelmed by the sight of his son. Marty Supreme is a better movie for going with the actual ending instead of cutting to the future, which would have added a blunt nostalgia to a movie that works better without it.