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Good to know.

During the filming of Little Shop of Horrors (1986), there was a night when the laughter and chaos of the set gave way to something strangely emotional — a moment that even caught Rick Moranis off guard.

It happened while shooting the original, darker ending — the one where Audrey II wins, destroying the city and devouring Seymour. Director Frank Oz had pushed for it to stay true to the stage version, but the mood on set was heavy. Moranis, normally lighthearted, grew quieter between takes. He later said, “I loved Seymour. He was all heart. Watching him lose everything felt wrong — like watching innocence die.”

When the cameras rolled, the giant animatronic plant roared, smoke filled the set, and Moranis delivered Seymour’s final lines with trembling sincerity: “I did it all for you, Audrey…” The puppet’s vines wrapped around him, and in that moment, his expression wasn’t fear — it was heartbreak.

When Oz yelled “cut,” the entire crew fell silent. Ellen Greene, who played Audrey, walked over and hugged him tightly. “You made him real,” she whispered. “People are going to love him because he tried.”

Though the ending was later reshot after test audiences demanded a happier one, that raw, tragic performance remained legendary among the crew. Frank Oz later admitted, “That night, Rick showed me that Seymour wasn’t a comic character — he was every person who’s ever wanted to be loved and paid the price for it.”

In a film filled with camp, songs, and spectacle, that one scene — a shy man destroyed by his own dream — became the beating heart of Little Shop of Horrors.