The magic of John Carpenter's iconic 1982 sci-fi horror film, The Thing, lies in its deliberately ambiguous ending. For the past 43 years, fans have been left pondering whether R.J. MacReady, portrayed by Kurt Russell, or Childs, portrayed by Keith David, transforms into the film's titular creature. Carpenter masterfully left audiences without clear answers—until a recent revelation at a special 4K screening of the film at the David Geffen Theater in Los Angeles on March 22.
During the event, Carpenter shared with acclaimed director Bong Joon Ho that a "giant hint" embedded in the middle of the film could potentially reveal who becomes The Thing at the movie's conclusion. In a playful twist, Carpenter humorously mentioned he'd disclose this secret for an undisclosed sum of money sent to his home in an envelope.
Carpenter also disclosed that the actors themselves were kept in the dark about their characters' fates. "They had no clue," he admitted. "But they had to play it human, you see. The creature imitates perfectly. It could be one of us, it could be somebody in the audience, and there's no way of telling. So I knew, they didn't know."
Following the screening, indie director Joe Russo (distinct from the MCU's Joe Russo) took to X / Twitter to share his theory on the elusive hint. Russo pointed out that MacReady is informed about the creature's ability to replicate at a cellular level, advising that they only consume food and drink they've personally handled. Despite this knowledge, MacReady shares his liquor with Childs in the film's final moments. Russo theorizes that this act suggests MacReady may have already transformed into The Thing. "As soon as Childs drinks from the bottle, The Thing has won," Russo posits. "It's beaten its most skeptical, final threat."
Carpenter's genius lies in leaving the ending open-ended, yet Russo provides further evidence supporting his theory. He highlights the film's final line, "Why don't we just wait here for a little while, see what happens?" as fitting if MacReady had indeed become The Thing. Additionally, Russo suggests that MacReady's apparent killing of The Thing could be a better imitation eliminating a poorer one to increase its chances of infiltrating society upon rescue.
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While some fans found Russo's theory compelling, others remained convinced that Childs is the one who transforms. One fan argued, "I still think it’s Childs because we don’t know his whereabouts for a long time heading into the final scene. But Keith David will tell you he’s 100% not The Thing." Russo responded, "Carpenter said both actors don't know... Childs always felt like a red herring to me."
Regardless of where one stands on the theory, it's clear that Carpenter continues to captivate and intrigue fans decades later, and we're fortunate to still receive snippets of his insightful commentary.
