‘Se7en’: What Was Really in The Box at The End?

‘Se7en’ fans have long conjectured about what Detective David Mills saw in the notorious box near the end of the movie, but director David Fincher has now disclosed what was inside the box prior to production.

Rumours that the box had a prosthetic head copy of Gwyneth Paltrow were denied by Fincher as “entirely ridiculous.” He clarified in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that the group had investigated the proportion of Paltrow’s body mass that would be attributable to her head. In light of this, they chose to symbolize the weight of the skull with a shot bag weighing seven or eight pounds.

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Fincher continued by explaining that the box contained more than just a weight in the famous moment where Detective Mills (played by Brad Pitt) finds his wife’s severed head after she is killed by John Doe (played by Kevin Spacey). He verified that a wig with some blood to hold the hair together was inside the box. He stated that the wig was purposefully made to appear gory. It was probably a wig and a shot bag, he said.

According to Fincher, Morgan Freeman, who portrayed Detective William Somerset, opened 16 or 17 boxes while filming, but because of Freeman’s strong performance, the mystery of what’s inside is still more terrifying.

Image Courtesy: IMDb

Brad Pitt also disclosed his role in the movie’s conclusion. He said in a recent interview that he had demanded in his contract that the box’s mystery be kept intact. Scenes that would expose too much were not what he wanted to cut. In spite of studio pressure to make the conclusion more heroic or hopeful, he demanded that his character, David Mills, kill John Doe and that the wife’s head remain in the box.

The movie is still regarded as a masterpiece because of its startling ending and the excellent performances by Pitt, Spacey, and Freeman. On 3rd January, ‘Se7en’ will be re-released in IMAX theatres.

–Farheen Ali