If you want to talk about movies that have some divisive endings then 2007’s I Am Legend is at the top of that list. I remember seeing that movie back in eighth grade and loving it right up until that ending. Boy, that scene where Will Smith’s character had to kill his pet dog, Sam… even if you’re not a dog-lover, it’s just impossible to not shed tears. And then his character, military scientist Robert Neville, discovered that he actually wasn’t the last man on Earth. His daily broadcasts were eventually heard by two survivors, a woman and a young boy, who decided to venture out to New York City in order to find him. Things only got more interesting from there, but then that ending happened. Yeah, way to fall down with a bad injury right before you reach the finish line.
We all remember the ending of I Am Legend all too well: Robert Neville sacrifices himself to allow Alice Braga‘s character to escape, along with her young companion, and the two find their way back to their colony. Not only that, but they took a serum of a cure Neville developed with them. That left the door open for a sequel, one that we never got. It’s not too difficult to understand why, given that so many people were divided over that ending. I Am Legend did make decent money, however, so at the time, I was expecting some kind of spin-off to happen. Years went by and sadly, the only thing people could talk about for I Am Legend was the ending.
However, there was an alternate ending to the movie. In this ending, Robert Neville didn’t sacrifice himself and actually allowed the vampire-like Darkseekers to reclaim his captive test subject. The reason being was that the test subject was the significant other to the leader of the Darkseekers. That was a tense scene where Neville actually got very close to the leader of the Darkseekers, but it did show a more human side to the creatures. The leader and his followers then left with the captured Darkseeker without harming Neville. And right after they left, Neville actually accompanied his fellow survivors to the colony and took the cure with him. I’m sure I speak for just about everyone when I say that was a much better ending.
Honestly, that is the ending the original cut of I Am Legend should have gone with. The first ending had Neville sacrifice himself when he didn’t even have to. When Alice Braga’s character told him there was enough room for all three of them, that pretty much made his sacrifice feel like it was forced. Sure, he managed to take those Darkseekers with him, but it didn’t really matter. Needless to say, the original ending of I Am Legend is what prevented it from being a great movie. Still, I would very much like to see some kind of spin-off and see how that deadly outbreak devastated the rest of the world. That’s something we never got, so any hopes I had of continuing I Am Legend were buried.
Well, that’s about to change, because Deadline has reported that an I Am Legend sequel is apparently in the works. And guess what? Will Smith is set to return. Now that is certainly some eyebrow-raising news, but get this, Michael B. Jordan is going to be in the sequel with him. We are finally getting Will Smith and Michael B. Jordan in a movie together, but I never suspected it would be in a sequel to I Am Legend. I’m still trying to comprehend this news, but I know everyone else has the same questions I have. I think it’s about time we’re getting an I Am Legend sequel, but how is it that Will Smith is returning?
Let’s take a minute and talk about the possibilities this sequel can explore. If Will Smith is returning to reprise his role as Robert Neville, then one of two things will happen: Robert Neville will either appear in flashbacks or the I Am Legend sequel is going with the alternate ending. I can see Michael B. Jordan playing a younger version of Robert Neville, but I’d rather see them take on the Darkseekers together. I really don’t think the fans would mind if the sequel goes with the alternate ending. Let’s be honest, as much as we talk about how bad the original ending was, I think the sequel going with the alternate ending will help us forget about it. Okay, maybe not completely, but why not follow the ending that makes more sense?
Roberte Neville was a great character and I’d like to see him try to restore his sanity being around a colony filled with people. I have a feeling Michael B. Jordan’s character could be a part of that colony or maybe he’s a member of another colony? Either way, just seeing these two interact with each other will be fun to watch. And just seeing those Darkseekers again should be even scarier than before. With today’s advancements in CGI, I have a feeling the sequel can make the Darkseekers more terrifying and possibly even evolve them. We have to assume time has passed since the first I Am Legend and it’s clear that this affliction changes its victims overtime. Who’s to say that what we saw in the first I Am Legend is the true extent of the infection?
No further details about the I Am Legend sequel have been reported, but I am very curious to hear more. Whoever Michael B. Jordan is playing, I can’t wait to see him interact with Will Smith’s Robert Neville. Hopefully this sequel will have a much more satisfying ending than the first one. Maybe Robert Neville will finally get to developing the cure and he can give humanity more hope? That could turn everything around, but who knows how more evolved the Darkseekers have become? Those are things the sequel needs to explore and I’m excited. What are your thoughts? Are you all looking forward to a sequel to I Am Legend?
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