Edward Scissorhands have scissors for hands – scissorhands, because his inventor could not complete his invention, due to his untimely death.
Edward Scissorhands is the 1990 film by Tim Burton, which arguably launched the career of actor Johnny Depp, who played the lead character of Edward Scissorhands.
Even three decades after the film was first released, it still has the same relevance as it did then.
A point of interest for many that have watched the film is the question on why Edward Scissorhands has scissors for hands. This can be attributed to the untimely death of Edward’s inventor, who was for all intents and purposes, his “father.”
What inspired Edward Scissorhands?
Interestingly enough, Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands was inspired by a doodle he drew as a teenager. In his 1995 published book, Burton on Burton, the acclaimed director explains the inception of the autobiographical character by writing:
“It came subconsciously and was linked to a character who wants to touch but can’t, who was both creative and destructive — those sorts of contradictions can create a kind of ambivalence.”
With the idea planted, it would take writer Caroline Thompson to give Burton’s doodle and inspiration a fully realised story.
Why does Edward have scissors for hands?
Edward Scissorhands was created by The Inventor, who was played by Vincent Price.
The Inventor saw the creation of Edward Scissorhands as a cure to his loneliness, as he would imagine him as his very own son. Therefore, after he created Edward’s mould, he began to add human features.
The Inventor added the human features in the order he believes makes one human. Starting with the heart, The Inventor worked his way all over the face and body.
The last detail he was supposed to add were the hands. However, in light of his untimely death, he did not get to finish his ideal completion of what his “son” was supposed to look like.
As a result, Edward Scissorhands adopted the name, because he did in fact have scissors for hands. This is despite the existence of his prosthetic hands, which were destroyed in the film.
Tim Burton explains the purpose of Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is arguably still one of Tim Burton’s landmark films due its underlying meaning.
When he was asked about what the film means to him, Burton stated, “This is a character I… thought about a lot, and I think sort of represented those years as a teenager when you’re quite sort of intense and misperceived and, you know, those pretty classic things.”
So, it is clear that the film captured how everyone, at some point in their lives has felt ostracised, and Scissorhands personified this narrative as he could not reach out for affection due to the fear of hurting other.
While having scissors for hands is not a reality, the matter of feeling alone or lonely is a common feeling.
Was Edward Scissorhands initially a musical?
An interesting fact about the initial inception of Edward Scissorhands is that Tim Burton had envisioned the story as musical.
This was corroborated by the screenwriter of the film Caroline Thompson, who had fallen in love with the idea of the film when Tim Burton showed her the doodle of Edward Scissorhands.
Thompson explained the initial idea by stating, “For the story, I made a list of things to do with your hands that made it difficult for Edward at every turn. That was my MO for dealing with his differences. I remember the title of one (song), which was I Can’t Handle This.”
Who else was in the running to play Edward Scissorhands?
Considering that the character of Edward Scissorhands was the career-making role for Johnny Depp, and the first of his collaborations with Tim Burton, it might be hard to believe that there were other leading male A-list actors that were in the running.
Some of the names that were thrown around included Tom Cruise, Jim Carrey and the surprise inclusion of Michael Jackson.
Jackson might have not had the acting experience, but he did have the demeanour of the character. All these personalities would have made the film different, hence it is perfect that Depp landed the role.
Conclusion
Over three decades after Edward Scissorhands was released, and the film still bears the cultural relevance that it did when it was first released.
The universal message of feeling lonely and alone, while in search of affection is one that remains timeless and still resonates to this day.
Edward Scissorhands was played by Johnny Depp and is now defined as his career-making role.
The name of the character is inspired by the fact that he has scissors for hands, due to his inventor not completing his construction because of his untimely death.