Last year, I posted two drafts of the script for Prey at Night that Damian Maffei very generously shared with me for the site. It was the blue and yellow drafts. Back then, the script was still titled “The Strangers 2”, and these were adjustments made from the first re-written draft which changed aspects such as dialogue and the ending.
Amongst the things that Steve sent me were many behind the scenes images that have never been seen before, and a call sheet from the first day of filming — which took place at the family home and Baseball field. But in addition to that, it was a production copy of Prey at Night, also titled “The Strangers 2”. (I’ll also note that the call sheet had a Strangers 2 logo, meaning it was always supposed to be a sequel. Would be interesting to know why it was renamed). The production copy is the first draft that was written (or re-written from Bertino’s original script). From there changes were made which are known as the Blue and Yellow drafts that I posted last year.
However, one of the biggest differences was the ending. As everyone knows, the film ended with Luke and Kinsey in the hospital, all Strangers dead with the possibility of one still being alive (but also likely just Kinsey’s imagination). And as has been seen before, they filmed a second ending where The Man in the Mask was still alive and killed a Doctor in the room. In the Blue draft, The Man in the Mask busts his way through the Nurse’s station, killing his way to Kinsey. Well, in interviews, Damian Maffei revealed the original ending they were working with would’ve seen both Dollface and The Man in the Mask escaping, albeit very injured.
This ending likely would’ve paved the way for sequels, potentially The Strangers looking for a new Pin-Up Girl. Damian confirmed to me that the ending was changed between this draft and the shooting script, which then conceived the bridge scene with the flaming truck. It’s interesting to note that the movie was also supposed to end there, and Johannes was in love with that ending. But later into production they added the hospital scene as an additional ending — and later returning to film the ending with the Doctor which was cut.
Well, the production draft, being the first Prey at Night draft, features the original Dollface and Man in the Mask ending, which honestly I preferred over the ending we got as it meant we could’ve gotten a third movie sooner. It’s interesting to note the differences between this draft and what we got on screen. And ultimately, how different the ending was.
The script starts with three knocks over black, an element taken from Bertino’s original script which had Liv Tyler screaming over black before cutting to her breaking out of a nightmare. Aunt Cheryl awakens to the knocks and it seems she and Uncle Marv are familiar with the Strangers who have been knocking on their door during the night. She goes out to investigate and finds that the Strangers slipped the Christian Living pamphlet they collected from the mormon boys in the first film under their door and have written “hello” all over it. The thunder illuminates Pin-Up Girl and Dollface behind her and then The Man in the Mask in front of her. Back in the bedroom, Uncle Marv hears various noises and a white mask watching him at the door, when he turns over — Cheryl’s dying body vomits blood all over him.
The opening with the family goes more or less how it did on screen with one change that Luke is gaming in the basement as opposed to playing baseball with his friends, we also find out the name of Kinsey’s boarding school is Walden Pond, and the trailer park in this draft is called Ferris Lake. Along the way to the trailer park, the family are almost taken out by an 18-wheeler — a red herring to what would happen toward the end of the film. Most of the script up until Kinsey and Luke finding the bodies is the same albeit for some different dialogue. When that scene comes around, rather than finding the window with hello written over it, they find the Christian Living pamphlet instead.
They reunite with their parents and as Luke and Mike head to the trailer again they hear the engine of the Strangers truck as it drives through the trailer park, focusing on them, before it drives away. In Marv and Cheryl’s trailer, Luke and Mike are ambushed by Pin-Up Girl who throws “baseball sized” rocks through the windows. Mike grabs a gun and The Man in the Mask appears, waiting for them outside. Mike threatens them with a gun and they disappear.
Kinsey and Cindy go back to the family trailer and neither of them notice Dollface sitting on the bed waiting for them. She comes out and torments them and they lock themselves in the bathroom. Dollface breaks in to the bathroom and kills Cindy. Kinsey escapes and sees The Man in the Mask. She hides under a trailer and he approaches her hiding spot, peeing in front of her before disappearing. Mike and Luke discover Cindy’s body and drive off to search for Kinsey but The Man throws his axe throw the windshield, causing them to crash. He then kills Mike.
Kinsey searches for help in the trailer park and finds the Strangers truck, believing it to be someone who can help she is chased through the trailer park and hides in the tube. In this version, rather than Pin-Up Girl saying “but we’ve just started”, this line is taken by Dollface. This is because the truck is driven by Pin-Up Girl. Which honestly makes a whole lot more sense because when they cut the movie together, somehow The Man in the Mask went from causing the car crash, to chasing Kinsey, to killing Mike all at the same time.
This draft uses a similar element from Bertino’s draft where Kinsey finds a trailer where a little girl is crying for help but it turns out to be Dollface luring her in. Luke finds them and threatens Dollface with a gun. But, sensing his hesitation, Dollface lifts her mask showing him that she is human which stops Luke from wanting to shoot her. The siblings escape and try to find Mike but his body has been taken away. The draft continues like the movie, they hide in a trailer and The Man in the Mask finds them. Luke hides Kinsey and goes to the pool.
This draft has some differences in the pool scene. Pin-Up Girl proper attacks Luke and he fights back and she chases him out to the pool where he finds a baseball bat and strikes her with it. When she tries to attack, he keeps slamming the bat into her skull until she dies. Luke torments and calls out for the Strangers, unaware that The Man in the Mask is behind him and attacks. Luke ends up in the pool and pulls The Man in and he leaves him for dead. Kinsey saves him and they share a heart to heart before Kinsey goes for help.
Now here’s where a lot of changes happen. A state trooper finds Kinsey, but as they’re driving to get Luke they find Mike’s body on the road. Realising it’s a trap, Kinsey tries to stop the trooper, but Dollface, who had been following Kinsey, kills him. Kinsey locks herself in the car but Dollface smashes the window to get in. Kinsey grabs the shotgun and shoots Dollface. She gets out to finish the job, but the gun clicks as it is empty. Dollface never removes her mask, she just sits on the side of the road struggling.
Before Kinsey can do anything, The Man arrives in the pickup truck. Kinsey gets in the police car and tries running but The Man follows in his truck. Kinsey gets trapped in an alleyway and The Man t-bones her and flips her upside down. Kinsey sets the truck on fire but it still isn’t enough and The Man chases after her in the flaming truck. They end up on the main road and an 18-wheeler jack knifes to avoid the pickup and blocks Kinsey from the truck. A young mother stops to help and Kinsey climbs into the flatbed as The Man gets out of his truck and tries to attack her once more.
Kinsey is able to grab his axe and she strikes him with it, sending him down onto the road, as Kinsey is driven to safety we close in on The Man in the Mask who is still breathing. Back at the trailer park, as the sun begins to rise, Kinsey is tended to in an Ambulance and Luke is found and taken to the hospital. Up on a hillside, The Man in the Mask is watching all the commotion — he is holding Pin-Up Girl’s mask, wiping away the blood and dirt from it. He then gets into the damaged truck where Dollface is in the passenger seat waiting and bleeding out from the gunshot. They share an “affectless” look, and the pair drive off together over the hillside, escaping once more and living to see another day.
Personally, I absolutely would’ve loved this ending. It could’ve opened up the chance for a third film where Dollface and The Man in the Mask hunt down their new Pin-Up Girl, giving us insight into their backstory. But I guess everything happens for a reason and if that did happen, we may never have gotten the trilogy.
I acknowledge the use of AI tools to generate the above concept art. I do not support the use of AI for professional work. The work above is for passion and not professional reasons. Always support real artists!
Take a look at some of the Behind the Scenes that Steve sent me!
Steve was also kind enough to provide me with the call sheet for Day 1 of shooting in Kentucky which took place at the family home and Baseball field. It also gives a glimpse at the second and third day of filming in the trailer park. Interesting to see they were working with the Blue Revisions at this point and there was some stuff filmed that never made it to the screen.
The content in this blog post was provided exclusively to IsTamaraHome.net. Please respect the exclusivity of this content and do not re-produce without consent. Do not scrub watermarks from images or documents.
