It's hard to believe that it has been 10 years since the release of Paul Feig's Bridesmaids – at least partially because the film remains just as fresh and funny as ever. Led by Kristen Wiig, the entire ensemble cast is stacked with hilarious stars doing what they do best, and the result is sequence after sequence that are equally hysterical and memorable. Certainly one part that fans will never forget is the infamous food poisoning scene, which features almost the entire bridal party vomiting and having diarrhea after a group meal, but what you may not know is that the bit was at one point punctuated by a spectacularly gross and over-the-top moment.
Paul Feig has in the recent past discussed the process of moderating the content of that incredible sequence, but during an interview with Yahoo! he revealed a specific moment that was left on the cutting room floor. Thanks to the free-flowing atmosphere on the set of the movie that allowed for plenty of improvisation and new ideas, a lot more material was shot than was actually used in the theatrical version of the comedy – the food poisoning scene included. As Feig described, there was a particularly sick bit featuring Ellie Kemper that was discovered to be too much when the film started to come together:
We shot a lot of stuff, some stuff we didn’t use. There's one scene in particular after Ellie Kemper runs out of the bathroom after throwing up on Wendi's head where she realizes she has to throw up again and she thinks there's another bathroom at the end of the hallway and runs down, throws open the door to this very white office, which turns out to be... the woman who owns the dress shop’s office, and projectile vomits across the office onto a picture of her wedding. We immediately went, 'OK, I think that was too much.'
Reflecting on the scene as it exists in both the theatrical cut and unrated cut of Bridesmaids, it's understandable why Feig and those making calls in the editing room decided this idea was a bit extra. Gross as the whole sequence is, the majority of the nastiness is implied rather than shown. While you know that obscene things are happening inside the toilet bowl and sink – as well as under Maya Rudolph's wedding dress – you really only see splashes of it (sorry). If Ellie Kemper's character is projectile vomiting in a pristine white office, there is no hiding it, and it could have easily crossed a line from "funny" to "nauseating."
As it exists, the scene in Bridesmaids is perfect, and thankfully easy to enjoy over and over again. In addition to being available on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital (which is how you can find the aforementioned unrated cut), the comedy is also currently streaming on both Peacock and Hulu + Live TV. Technically the official tenth anniversary was last week, but it's not too late to celebrate.
