A Shawshank Redemption Cut Scene Revealed The Sad Fate Of Brooks’ Bird

The Shawshank Redemption originally included a tear duct-tickling end for a certain avian cast member. It goes without saying that being sent to prison is not Andy Dufresne’s finest moment. Confined within Shawshank State Prison on charges of murdering his wife and her lover, Andy faces a glum future behind bars, but his stay in Shawshank is made somewhat easier by the colorful group of friendly faces he finds there, including Morgan Freeman’s Red, Heywood, and Tommy. There’s also Brooks Hatlen, played by James Whitmore. Every prisoner has their own quirks, and Brooks’ is a baby crow called Jake, which he keeps in a breast pocket and feeds maggots.

The veteran of Shawshank, Brooks is wholly institutionalized by the prison system. He works the library, looks after his bird, and has a group of associates he’s friendly with. Brooks is, despite his circumstances, content. Consequently, his reaction to getting parole is a negative one. Brooks unsuccessfully attempts to earn more time inside by threatening a fellow prisoner, then takes his own life after trying and failing to acclimatize in the outside world after 50 years at Shawshank – but not before etching “Brooks was here” into the wood of his lodgings. Brooks’ death is a devastating moment that gives The Shawshank Redemption one of its most tragic gut-punches – but it was almost even sadder.

As revealed by The Shawshank Redemption director, Frank Darabont, a death scene for Jake the crow was cut from the movie. In the finished edit, Brooks releases Jake before being freed from Shawshank, and the bird is never seen again. On the Post Mortem with Mick Garris podcast, however, Darabont described a dropped scene where Andy and the other prisoners would’ve found Jake dead after Brooks’ release. The gang hold a makeshift funeral for the bird, which is intended to symbolize paying their respects to Brooks himself, with Jake’s feathery corpse representing their fallen friend.

Cutting Jake’s death from The Shawshank Redemption was undoubtedly a wise move on behalf of Darabont. The 1994 classic hardly shies away from the hardships of prison, nor the despair life can inflict upon those who deserve it, and those who do not. But The Shawshank Redemption also peddles hope, and it’s this very optimism that allows Andy (and later Red) to leave Shawshank for a new life. The Shawshank Redemption‘s duality between hope and misery is represented perfectly by Brooks and Jake. The old-timer failed to survive outside Shawshank and tragically hanged himself, but since Jake’s fate is left ambiguous, the prisoners (and the audience) are allowed to hope the bird is out there thriving, even without knowing for sure.

Had The Shawshank Redemption followed up Brooks’ deeply upsetting demise with the death of his pet bird, that delicate bittersweet balance would’ve become uneven, with misery consuming the hopeful undercurrent beneath Stephen King’s story. Andy would have no reason to believe he could make it out of Shawshank, and viewers would be left demoralized at the dismal 2-for-2 record for prison release deaths. All the while Jake might still be alive, the spark of life never truly goes out.

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Craig Elvy
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Craig first began contributing to Screen Rant in 2016, several years after graduating college, and has been ranting ever since, mostly to himself in a darkened room. Having previously written for various sports and music outlets, Craig’s interest soon turned to TV and film, where a steady upbringing of science fiction and comic books finally came into its own.
Craig has previously been published on sites such as Den of Geek, and after many coffee-drenched hours hunched over a laptop, part-time evening work eventually turned into a full-time career covering everything from the zombie apocalypse to the Starship Enterprise via the TARDIS.

Since joining the Screen Rant fold, Craig has been involved in breaking news stories and mildly controversial ranking lists, but now works predominantly as a features writer.
Jim Carrey is Craig’s top acting pick and favorite topics include superheroes, anime and the unrecognized genius of the High School Musical trilogy.

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