The original script for Disney’s “The Santa Clause” didn’t sound much like a kids’ movie.
Discussing the 1994 holiday flick Wednesday on “The Tonight Show,” star Tim Allen revealed that his character, Scott Calvin, was supposed to shoot and kill St. Nick.
“The original ‘Santa Clause’ is a little darker, written by two comedians, and I actually shot and killed Santa, in the original movie. He fell off the roof because I thought he was a burglar,” Allen, 65, explained. “He gives me the card, the whole movie starts. The kid actually starts, ‘You just killed Santa.’ And I said, ‘He shouldn’t have been on the roof when he wasn’t invited.'”
In the film, Scott Calvin startles Santa Claus while he’s on the roof, triggering his fall. After receiving the card, Calvin becomes the next in line to fill Santa’s shoes.
“I’m laughing so hard, but the head of Disney at the time, [Jeffrey] Katzenberg said, ‘Well, we can’t start a movie like that,’ and I said, ‘Why not?’ And he said, ‘We can’t start a Disney movie with you murdering Santa,'” Allen recalled.
The “Last Man Standing” star went on to appear in the franchise’s two sequels, “The Santa Clause 2” and “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause.”
“I’m literally the last guy in the world who should be Santa Claus because I don’t like kids all that much,” Allen quipped. “I’m not going to hurt them, I don’t say inappropriate stuff, just don’t like them.”
Allen shares daughter Katherine, 29, with ex-wife Laura Deibel. He and second wife Jane Hajduk welcomed daughter Elizabeth in March 2009.