This ‘Love Actually’ Deleted Storyline Makes the Airport Scene Even Wilder
Love Actually explores nine intertwined stories set in the frantic month before Christmas. The film has become a holiday classic for many, but it certainly has some odd plot points. Believe it or not, several storylines had to be cut from the already complicated film. One deleted storyline involving Thomas-Brodie-Sangster’s character, Sam, would have made the airport scene at the end of Love Actually pretty interesting.
‘Love Actually’ follows several different love stories
Originally released in 2003, Love Actually is a Christmas-themed rom-com that follows nine different but loosely connected stories. Liam Neeson portrays Daniel, a man trying to care for his stepson Sam (Thomas-Brodie Sangster), while mourning the recent death of his wife, Joanna.
Encouraged by Daniel, Sam decides to learn the drums to impress his classmate and crush, also named Joanna. After the school’s Christmas pageant, Daniel takes Sam to the airport so he can tell Joanna how he feels before she leaves for the US. To catch his crush before she leaves, Sam must slip past security and sprint through the airport. One deleted storyline makes this scene even wilder.
The original draft of ‘Love Actually’ included a deleted scene from the airport
Love Actually already has a pretty complex plot. It might surprise some fans to learn that several storylines were deleted from the film. Writer/director Richard Curtis explained one deleted scene in a video posted by Vudu. “We were a bit torn whether or not to put this next bit in because there would have been effects sort of and polish done on it,” Curtis explained.
“In the original draft of the movie, there were lots of mentions about the fact that Sam, the little boy, was a brilliant gymnast, and you casually saw him when he was very sad being brilliant at gym, sort of doing double twists and turns and not getting any joy out of it at all,” the screenwriter continued.
“And so when it came to the airport, and he had to rush through the airport, he brought his gymnastic prowess into play.” In the deleted scene, Sam front flips over security guards, cartwheels through the airport, and swings down several floors from bars on the ceiling. The obvious use of a stunt double for Sam’s tricks probably would have taken viewers out of the emotional depth of the scene.
Thomas Brodie-Sangster doesn’t mind being known as the kid from ‘Love Actually’
Now 32 years old, Thomas Brodie-Sangster has landed quite a few acting roles since his Love Actually days. Brodie-Sangster appeared as Jojen Reed in Game of Thrones, Newt in Maze Runner, and Benny Watts in The Queen’s Gambit. However, the actor doesn’t mind the recognition for his role in Love Actually.
“If I got annoyed about it every time, I’d spend a lot of my life that way,” he told The Guardian in May 2022. “It’s something I’m really proud of. It’s cool to be in a film that’s somehow still gaining momentum. It did quite well, but it wasn’t a huge blockbuster. But over the years, it’s gained that cult following.”
