MacReady is breathing out freezing water vapor breath like a steam engine. Childs is not. He might not even be breathing.
Earlier on, we see at least one partially assimilated thing breathing mist, but it was still of human body temperature, and still had water vapor in its lungs, and still had lungs, probably, because it was still breathing. It didn't have time to reach ambient temperature. It hadn't time to complete assimilation.
Childs had plenty of time to complete assimilation. And plenty of time to cool to the ambient air temperature, where even if he had lungs with water vapor in them, his breath would not mist.
Plus he drinks the cocktail that could be full of fire fluid.
Can't find a movie or TV show? Login to create it.
Want to rate or add this item to a list?
Not a member?
Reply by VHS-VANDAL
on February 1, 2019 at 11:10 PM
Carpenter filmed multiple endings for The Thing, including a "happier" ending because editor Todd Ramsay thought that the bleak, nihilistic conclusion would not test well with audiences. In the alternate take, MacReady is rescued and given a blood test that proves he is not infected.Carpenter said that stylistically this ending would have been "cheesy".Editor Verna Fields was tasked with reworking the ending to add clarity and resolution. It was finally decided to create an entirely new scene, which omitted the suspicion of Childs being infected by removing him completely, leaving MacReady alone. This new ending tested only slightly better with audiences than the original, and the production team agreed to the studio's request to use it. It was set to go to print for theaters when the producers, Carpenter, and executive Helena Hacker decided that the film was better left with ambiguity instead of nothing at all. Carpenter gave his approval to restore the ambiguous ending, but a scream was inserted over the outpost explosion to posit the monster's death. Universal executive Sidney Sheinberg disliked the ending's nihilism and, according to Carpenter, said, "Think about how the audience will react if we see the [Thing] die with a giant orchestra playing". Carpenter later noted that both the original ending and the ending without Childs tested poorly with audiences, which he interpreted as the film simply not being heroic enough.
THE ANSWER IS....THERE IS NO REAL ANSWER.