Severance Season 2 Almost Had a Much Worse Finale, but Ben Stiller Fixed It

The second season of Severance has reached the finale and another round of revolution in tears and blood. Mark's innie and outie come into contact and turn out to be each other's worst enemies.

After the end of Cold Harbor, Mark's days in Lumon are numbered. So it's time to perform the final deed, make the villains bleed, take his beloved by the hand and run, slowing down in a scarlet frame and freezing in eternity.

In an instant, Ben Stiller puts everything in its place, drawing a beautiful point in a gripping story. The main problem is solved, and what now – does it really matter?

The Season 2 Finale Was Originally Intended to Be Different, According to Dan Erickson

Fans were afraid that the second season, like its finale, would not be able to surpass the first, but Dan Erickson and Ben Stiller did it. The Cold Harbor episode will definitely go down in TV history, especially for its final minutes.

Mark S., covered in blood, stands between two women as a red glow illuminates each of them and must make a choice. Dan Erickson admitted that he knew from the beginning that the season would end with this choice, but the details were different.

As we know, the devil is in these smallest details, and now we can only thank Ben Stiller for bringing Erickson's idea to perfection.

In an interview with The Wrap, the showrunner admitted that he originally envisioned the ending a little differently:

“I had come up with a version where Helly was not there, and Mark makes the decision to go back and finds her later. Ben – goddamn it – in his wisdom, was like, “It's going to be such a moment if they're both there.”

Thank you, Ben Stiller.

Without Helly, the Finale Would Have Lost Much of Its Emotional Intensity

If Helly hadn't been with Mark and Gemma in the finale, not only would we not have gotten the most romantic walk down the hallway to The Windmills of Your Mind, but the scene itself would have lost much of its emotional intensity.

Watching Mark S. make an agonizing choice between the two main women in his and his outie's life is almost a cathartic experience.

As Erickson points out, this choice is not only and far from being about romantic feelings, but about Mark S. finally realizing his value and putting himself on the same level as his outie – he finally chose himself.

Ben Stiller Also Perfected the Finale of the First Season in Much the Same Way

What's funny is that, as Dan Erickson said, almost the same thing happened in the first season. The showrunner originally planned for Mark to write the now iconic line, “She's alive!” and it was Ben Stiller who came up with the idea for Mark to shout it.

We now know that scene as one of the greatest in television history – and that's because Ben Stiller knows how to crank up the emotional intensity to the max.