According to the DVD documentaries, the first cut of the film had a longer "Visions from Hell" sequence, more blood, and a different, though similar, ending with Weir returning to the ship. The test audience and studio executives didn't like it, so it was re-cut with less gore and an alternate ending, involving what director Paul W.S. Anderson called "The Burning Man Sequence"; essentially, flames were superimposed onto existing footage of Weir, so that Miller would be fighting the manifestation of the burning crewman he once had to abandon; Weir himself would not return. The second test audience liked this version better, but preferred the confrontation with Weir of the first, so the film was edited again. The final cut is a less-intense hybrid of both test screenings, with significantly less gore.