John Carpenter’s The Thing has become one of the all-time
cult classics, often revered by fans as a perfect film – and rightfully so, as it
pretty much is. The 1982 film was
initially killed at the box office by E. T., as moviegoers preferred a
friendlier alien that summer, but in the decades since, it has rightfully found
its audience through home video. In
debates about remakes, The Thing is usually cited at the top of the list, due
to its skillful expansion on the original source material of John W. Campbell, Jr.'s Who Goes There?
The success of The Thing can be attributed to many different
factors; its brilliant script by Bill Lancaster, the jaw-shattering practical special
effects by Rob Bottin, its claustrophobic Antarctica setting and, most
importantly, its top-notch cast of characters.
Each actor, from Wilford Brimley to Keith David to Kurt Russell brings
their A-Game and ups the ante of suspense, making the audience constantly second-guess
“who is The Thing?”
Even today, fans still debate the ambiguous ending where
Russell’s MacReady and Keith David’s Childs sit across from one another in the
burnt out remains of US Outpost 31, their guard still up as to which one of
them may be The Thing. Of course, the
general consensus is that Childs is The Thing as he shows no breath coming from
his mouth. This theory is only further cemented
by the fact that Russell is the star of the film and there’s absolutely NO way
the hero could actually be the villain right?
There have even been fan theories that MacReady is aware that Childs is
The Thing as he offers him a drink – which may or may not be gasoline and not
truly liquor (as The Thing wouldn’t be able to tell the difference).
But…what if R.J. MacReady
was actually The Thing all along?
Think about it; The Thing’s ultimate goal is to survive by any means possible. As any great
horror/sci-fi protagonist would, MacReady surely goes to great extremes to
ensure his survival by the films’ final reel.
Throughout the film, MacReady desperately tries to convince his
companions that he is truly human and that one of them is actually The Thing; I’m
not saying that one of them ISN’T…but that they’re also The Thing. If MacReady was The Thing as well, wouldn’t
the ultimate sign of self-preservation be to expose and eliminate a lesser
version of itself – in a basic sacrificial lamb fashion? In this particular case, the blood test
sequence and, especially the scene where Bennings Thing has its freak out in
front of everyone out in the snow.
Each time the group believes to have exposed and killed The
Thing after it has copied one of their own, the extermination is not in vain as it’s
for the Greater Good of The Thing’s survival. This also adds a win for MacReady Thing, as its number of antagonists dwindles with each reveal and destruction.
If The Thing is all about adapting and learning, why couldn’t
MacReady Thing assimilate quicker and learn the blame game that is being played
out amongst the characters? After all,
the computer game of chess that MacReady is playing when we first meet him is
shown for a reason. He’s either under
the radar or making himself stand out as the “leader” by organizing the tests
and finger-pointing those who are The (lesser advanced) Things. If MacReady was The Thing, hiding in plain
sight and orchestrating the events of the film would be a flawless cover.