I Can’t Believe A Quiet Place: Day One Cut Joseph Quinn’s Most Heartbreaking Scene

Summary Eric's deleted scene reveals his struggle with suicide, bringing depth and meaning to his character in A Quiet Place: Day One.

The scene changes the character dynamics, showing Eric's newfound will to live and his need for human connection.

Joseph Quinn's impressive range as an actor shines in the emotional deleted scene, adding layers of complexity to the film.

This article contains references to a fictional character experiencing suicidal thoughts.

Joseph Quinn had a prominent role in A Quiet Place: Day One, but one deleted scene reveals so much more about the character. The Quiet Place films have become a new sensational horror franchise from the incredibly creative John Krasinski. Since the first movie debuted in 2018, the series has recieved a sequel, and a spin-off prequel which details the first day of the invasion from the perspective of two individuals in New York City.

While Lupita Nyong'o stars as Sammy, a terminally ill woman who has no fear of death, she is joined by Joseph Quinn's character Eric. In the movie's theatrical release, Eric's motivations for joining Sammy on her perilous adventure for pizza may be difficult to understand, but with the recent release of a deleted scene from the film, the character now makes a lot more sense. However, I am really struggling to understand why the film chose to cut out two minutes and 18 seconds, which completely opens up Eric's character and gives significantly more depth to the film.

2:20 Related A Quiet Place Just Made John Krasinski's Death Much Darker 6 Years Later John Krasinski's Lee Abbott died six years ago in A Quiet Place, but a new reveal in A Quiet Place: Day One makes his death a lot darker than before.

A Quiet Place: Day One Cut A Scene With Joseph Quinn's Eric Revealing His Suicide Plans

Eric Had A Specific Reason For Being In The Subway

Close

People shared an exclusive deleted scene from the movie that sees Sammy and Eric engage in one of the very few conversations to take place in the movie. Sammy asks Eric why he was so dressed up in the subway, and whether it was for a job interview that he might have been traveling to or from. However, his response immediately provides more context and background for a character who gets very little in the final cut.

Eric explains that his relationship with his father was strained. The scene strongly hints at the idea that Eric is gay, and that his father and community did not accept him. However, upon moving to New York and finding acceptance, he still struggled with feeling alone and unwelcome. Eventually, this feeling overwhelmed him, and he decided that due to having no place to call home, he would rather not be alive.

How Eric's Suicide Reveal Would've Changed A Quiet Place: Day One

It Alters The DNA Of A Quiet Place: Day One

Close

The fact is that this scene completely alters not only the character of Eric, but also the entire weight of the film. Eric enters the film soaking wet as he emerges from the subway. Upon getting to land and seeing the monsters, he decides to try and run for his life. This indicates that the near-death experience of his attempted suicide and the subsequent accidents, he found a greater purpose and reason to keep on living.

However, it also makes the decision for Eric to choose to stay with Sammy, and walk into a dangerous situation make more sense, as the character values the presence of another person to be with. Sam's quest to get pizza in A Quiet Place: Day One is the mission of a woman who is terminally ill, and it appears highly unusual for another healthy person to choose to take that path, but Eric needs to be with another human, and just be seen. It also provides an interesting counterpoint to Sammy as she follows her final quest and is able to die as she chooses, while Eric gains a greater will to live.

Related A Quiet Place: Day One Ending Should've Been So Much Bigger Based On Part 2 Detail Based on one crucial detail from A Quiet Place 2, A Quiet Place: Day One's ending moments should have been significantly bigger than what is depicted.

A Quiet Place: Day One's Eric Deleted Scene Also Shows How Great Of An Actor Joseph Quinn Is

Joseph Quinn Has Great Range As An Actor

Close

The performance really rounds out the character of Eric with more meaning and emotion, and it's a terrible shame that Quinn's performance was not included in the final cut. While Eric is a prominent character, this deleted scene is arguably the most impressive display of emotion and heart from Quinn's entire perofrmance in the film. Of course, there is a great scene with Eric putting on a show and cheering up Sammy in the third act, but the deleted scene is very different.

While Quinn has been able to showcase his confidence, bravado, and showmanship in roles in Stranger Things as Eddie Munson, and in the bar scene in Day One, the deleted scene shows heart. Quinn delivers his lines with lines dripping with emotional weight, and it is an impressive display of his range. Had the scene made it to the final cut of A Quiet Place: Day One, it would have been a great moment of connection and truth for the characters, and added layers of complexity that now only exist in the subtext of the film.