Moranis, among other issues related to his family and personal life, has agoraphobia which has intensified with time. He rarely goes out in public now, but has recorded comedy and country albums from the comfort of his home.
I am in full agreement with Besty. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE having the ending as an option, but I think it proves that the test audiences actually might have been right for once. I like the wink to the "happy" ending, and I think switching the movie suddenly into full on Monster Movie mode, which it wasn't before, just doesn't work. Don't get me wrong--the stage ending (which, as pointed out, is actually fairly different) is perfect for the stage, but...
I wonder why they never recorded the new song written for the end credits. I LOVE the song, Crystal Ronette and Chiffon as performed on Debbie Shapiro-Gravitte's Menken album (which is pretty great all around.)
I've always thought the new ending is just the workprint that was originally abandoned and fixed up to be released again. So, whether there would have been different music or tighter editing seems like it is missing the point of it not being a finished product (despite it seemingly being sold as such now).
Has Frank Oz ever said he considers that the real finished ending? I know he supports it being released, but was it considered done?