The 2004 science-fiction/thriller film The Butterfly Effect is famous for its entertaining and, at times, corny premise. It follows Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher), a young adult who travels back in time to change the terrible and dark events of his and his friends' past. He learns about The Butterfly Effect, a theory that even small alternations can cause massive ripples. According to Britannica.com, the theory comes from Edward Lorenz, who figured out that weather patterns can affect each other. He realized that when a butterfly in China moves, the United States can see certain weather afterward.

In 2013, it was announced that The Butterfly Effect would get a reboot, but this never materialized. The movie grossed $96 million at the box office, which was impressive. What happens during The Butterfly Effect, and how is its ending different from the alternate ending?

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What Is The Butterfly Effect About?

Kayleigh and Evan talking in The Butterfly Effect

There are many movies that use the butterfly effect theory, and not everyone thinks that The Butterfly Effect succeeds on that front. It's still a memorable story that is full of emotion.

The Butterfly Effect follows Evan's friend group including siblings Tommy Miller (William Lee Scott) and Kayleigh Miller (Amy Smart) and Lenny Kagan (Elden Henson). They are all carrying around the trauma of being abused by Tommy and Kayleigh's father (played by Eric Stoltz) and seeing lots of violence as children.

Many sci-fi movies get time travel right, and The Butterfly Effect might seem fairly melodramatic at times. However, Evan's journey to help himself and his friends is understandable and commendable. Evan realizes that he can time travel and change the events of the past. He begins doing this so he can stop Kayleigh from taking his own life and make sure that they are still romantically involved.

How Does The Butterfly Effect End?

Evan (Ashton Kutcher) holding his notebook in The Butterfly Effect

The Butterfly Effect ending is pretty devastating. Like great action movies with sad endings, there doesn't seem to be any way that Evan can find happiness with his friends still in his life. Evan has been dealing with a lot of pain, and he wants to make things right. He travels back in time to when he met Kayleigh and acts like such a jerk that she has no interest in becoming friends with him.

From Evan's influence, Kayleigh and Tommy move in with their mother, which stops their father from abusing them and ruining their lives. The movie does prove that childhood trauma can affect people into adulthood. It might be tough to take at times, but this is a realistic depiction.

In some ways, The Butterfly Effect is a so bad it's good sci-fi movie. And the ending might not make a ton of sense. Evan decides that in order to stop himself from going back in time and altering events, he needs to destroy his videos and journals. He sets fire to them and feels confident that nothing will change. The final scene sees Evan and Kayleigh passing each other on a New York City street eight years in the future. While they do seem to know each other, they aren't a part of each other's lives.

Since the characters continue on with their days, this suggests that Evan's plan worked. But if he is able to time travel, as he learns when he's in the hospital, how could burning journals and videos really stop that? It's best to just watch the movie as an entertaining, fast-paced ride and not delve too deep into any questions. It's very easy to find plot holes here or things that don't quite add up.

What Is The Butterfly Effect's Alternate Ending?

Evan (Ashton Kutcher) in The Butterfly Effect

There is an alternate ending for The Butterfly Effect and it's an incredibly dark one. According to ScreenCrush, Evan is able to go back to when he was born. He is back in his mother's womb, and he takes the umbilical cord and hangs himself. In Evan's mind, this means that nothing bad ever happened since he was able to stop himself from being born. He doesn't meet Tommy and Kayleigh. And he feels that this would be better.

However, the alternate The Butterfly Effect ending definitely wouldn't be a satisfying, great movie ending. It brings up more questions than it answers. Evan isn't the reason why Kayleigh and Tommy have a horrible life. That's all on their father. If Evan never knew Kayleigh and Tommy, it's hard to see how that would stop them from living with their dad and experiencing his abuse.

Even if the ending of The Butterfly Effect might not be 100 percent free of plot holes or confusing moments, it's preferable to the alternate ending. For some, The Butterfly Effect is a 2000s movie that doesn't hold up. No matter how someone feels about it, the 2004 sci-fi/thriller definitely made an impression on audiences.

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