Tim Allen reveals 'The Santa Clause' originally had a very morbid twist

Susan Haas | USA TODAY

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Did you know Tim Allen shot Santa?

It's true, the actor told Jimmy Fallon on Wednesday's "The Tonight Show": “The original ‘Santa Clause’ is a little darker, written by two comedians, and I actually shot and killed Santa. … He fell off the roof because I thought he was a burglar. He gives me the card, the whole movie starts. The kid actually starts, ‘You just killed Santa.’ And I said, ‘He shouldn’t have been on the roof when he wasn’t invited.' ”

In the 1994 holiday classic, Scott Calvin (Allen) startles Santa, causing the big guy to fall from the roof. When Santa gives Scott a card telling him he's next in line to fill out the red suit and shiny black boots, the Ho Ho Holidays really get rolling.

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But wait, we didn't see Scott brandishing a firearm, did we?

“I’m laughing so hard, but the head of Disney at the time, (Jeffrey) Katzenberg said, ‘Well, we can’t start a movie like that,’ and I said, ‘Why not?’ " Allen recalled. "And he said, ‘We can’t start a Disney movie with you murdering Santa.' ”

So it was the fall, not something more dire, that does in the man in red.

The “Last Man Standing” star went on to appear in two sequels, “The Santa Clause 2” and “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause.”

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