: A poignant scene was removed (and accidentally omitted from some Region 2 DVDs) where David calls his family in America to say goodbye just before his attempted suicide with a pen knife.

These deleted scenes are a masterclass in why editing is the invisible art of cinema. Each excised moment is competently shot and acted, yet almost every cut improves the final film. The missing scenes either over-explain the mystery, blunt the comedic timing, or soften the tragic isolation of David Kessler.

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Not all deleted scenes were cut for gore or humor. Several sequences were trimmed simply to keep the narrative moving at a brisk 97 minutes.

An extended version of this scene featured more dialogue from the pub patrons. Specifically, a local man tells a long, bleakly humorous joke about a Texan visiting London. Why it was removed:

Ultimately, while the deleted scenes offer a fascinating "what if" look at a bloodier version of the movie, the trims arguably helped create a tighter, more effective film—one that remains a gold standard for the horror-comedy genre.

Despite the deleted scenes, "An American Werewolf in London" has had a lasting impact on the horror and comedy genres. The film's influence can be seen in everything from "The Frighteners" to "Shaun of the Dead," and its blend of humor and horror has become a staple of modern genre cinema.

The removal of these scenes also had an impact on the film's characters and story. The deleted scenes provided additional context for the characters and their motivations, and their removal made the film feel slightly more streamlined. However, the film's core message and themes remained intact, and the deleted scenes only served to enhance the film's overall vision.

: The intimate scene between David and Alex was originally longer and more explicit but was edited down to ensure an R rating in the U.S..

While not a "deleted scene" in the traditional sense, the ending remains a point of historical discussion regarding what could have been shown. Landis intentionally chose a sudden, jarring cut to the Marcels’ upbeat version of "Blue Moon" to act as a "sick joke" punchline to David’s tragedy, opting against a lingering emotional coda.

However, the script and filmed footage originally painted an even darker picture for the female lead. In the original cut, after David is killed, Alex turns to leave the alley—and is shot by the police.

Universal’s standard practice in the early 1980s did not always prioritize the preservation of deleted trims, meaning the theatrical cut we have today is likely the only definitive version that will ever exist.

In the theatrical version, David (David Naughton) and Jack (Griffin Dunne) walk through the foggy Yorkshire moors before being stalked and attacked by the werewolf. However, Landis originally filmed a much longer, more atmospheric buildup to this pivotal moment.

Originally, the fake movie-within-a-movie had a longer, fully edited narrative sequence playing on the theater screen. The footage featured actors in ridiculous scenarios, serving as a hilarious counterpoint to the horrific, decaying corpses talking to David in the theater seats. Landis trimmed the onscreen movie down to ensure the audience focused entirely on the dialogue between David and his victims. Why Were They Cut?

While the film remains a masterclass in tight editing, several highly graphic sequences, alternate jokes, and musical cues were left on the cutting room floor. This comprehensive breakdown explores the missing footage, the lost gore, and the alternate versions of cinema's greatest werewolf film. The Lost Tramp Attack: The Holy Grail of Missing Footage