Blockbusters today tend to suffer from a severe case of bloat. There are too many characters, too much CGI, too much action and they run for close to 3 hours. Audiences have been conditioned to accept this over the years, but it can still be a surprise to learn that despite a generous runtime, major scenes and storylines still end up on the cutting room floor.
It could be a subplot that sheds new light on a character, or a major twist that was trimmed to keep things moving. Most comic book movies go through this fat trimming process; usually for the better too, though some movies might have benefitted from the lost scenes staying in.
Here, we’ll take a look at some of the coolest subplots that were removed from comic book films, and how they might have affected the final product if they’d remained. They may not have made the final cut, but that doesn’t stop them being pretty neat in their own right.