The 1989 holiday classic National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation nearly included a post-credits scene with Todd and Margo that would have explained a lingering question about the Griswolds’ chaotic festivities. While National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is centered on the holiday experiences of the extended Griswold family tree, the movie also features a humorous subplot involving Clark, Ellen, Audrey, and Rusty’s next-door neighbors, the yuppie couple Todd (Nicholas Guest) and Margo (pre-Seinfeld Julia Louis-Dreyfus). The two neighbors often take the brunt of the Griswolds’ hijinks, such as Clark accidentally sending ice crashing through their window, with this running gag originally being intended to carry on in a post-credits sequence.
Considering Christmas Vacation is already filled with iconic quotes and scenes, it’s hard to imagine that the filmmakers had even more great gags and moments that ended up on the cutting room floor. From deleted sequences involving Clark and Rusty to extended lines in the Griswold family’s opening Christmas tree caper, the hit movie ultimately had to cut some hilarious additional content before landing on the final scenes in its 97-minute runtime. One version of the script for National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation even included a quick post-credits scene, which would have brought back Margo and Todd to feel the impact of yet another Griswold shenanigan while also answering an odd question from the movie’s final minutes.
The Griswolds’ Exploded Santa’s Sleigh Display Crashed Into Todd & Margo’s House In Deleted Post-Credits Scene
The post-credits scene in one script for Christmas Vacation (via Script Slug) saw Margot and Todd peacefully lying in bed after the chaos they had experienced throughout the week. Todd ironically remarked, “Nothing else can happen. It’s quiet, it’s peaceful, all is calm… If we don’t go to sleep, Santa Claus won’t come.” Julia Louis-Dreyfus would have closed out the movie with the final line, “You’re so cute,” followed by a long beat before the Griswolds’ life-size Santa Claus, reindeer, sleigh, and Christmas lights display comes crashing through the couple’s ceiling and into their bedroom. At this point, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation would have officially faded out and concluded on one last comedic beat.
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In addition to making Todd and Margo the target of the joke another time, the cut post-credits scene would have explained what happened to the Griswolds’ exploded Santa decorations after Christmas Vacation’s ending. In the last sequence of the movie, a gas explosion causes the family’s outdoor decoration of Santa’s sleigh to be launched into the air and fly like a rocket across the sky, hilariously emulating what the real Santa, sleigh, and reindeer might look like that night. The 1989 comedy never reveals when the display lands or whether it simply burns into ashes, but Todd and Margo’s post-credits scene explains that it later returned and crash-landed right next door.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation’s Margo & Todd Post-Credits Scene Would Have Ruined The Ending
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation has a great ending that leaves audiences laughing in a chaotically heartwarming sequence. After all the ridiculousness of this Christmas, the Griswold family members of all ages happily come together with the Shirleys and SWAT team in the name of holiday cheer. Consequently, the alternative of ending on a note in which Margo and Todd are harmed yet again would undercut that sweet moment. Instead, the movie ends as it begins, with Clark’s holiday spirit renewed as Mavis Staples’ “Christmas Vacation” plays over the credits. By concluding the movie with a shot of Clark Griswold rather than Todd and Margo, the comedy maintains its heart and themes in place of an arguably unnecessary quick gag.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
- Release Date:
- 1989-12-01
- Director:
- Array
- Cast:
- Array
- Rating:
- PG-13
- Runtime:
- 97 minutes
- Genres:
- Array
- Writers:
- Array
- Creator :
- John Hughes
- Budget:
- $25 million
- Studio(s):
- Array
- Distributor(s):
- Array
- Sequel(s):
- Array
- prequel(s):
- Array
- Franchise(s):
- Array
