Netflix Baby Reindeer star says deleted scene gave character different ending

Netflix's Baby Reindeer star, Nava Mau, says a deleted scene would have given her character a different ending.

The actress, who plays Teri in the seven-part miniseries, revealed that there was a scene that didn't make it to the final cut, which provided closure for her character.

The Mexican-born actress portrays a character struggling to maintain a relationship with the main character, Donny, in the series heavily influenced by the real-life experiences of show star Richard Gadd, 33.

Gadd not only wrote the scripts but also plays the lead male character, drawing from his personal encounters with trauma and a deranged stalker.

The darkly comic drama has captivated fans, and now 31 year old Nava has suggested that some scenes were filmed but ultimately left out of the final episodes.

Her character's relationship with Gadd's Donny is disrupted as he grapples with internalised homophobia, shame, surviving a sexual assault, and harassment from an obsessive character named Martha, portrayed convincingly by Jessica Gunning, 38.

Nava claims she has been able to appreciate her character's journey more than most viewers, thanks to a deleted scene that offered closure.

In the series, Teri and Donny argue and break up, but according to Nava, they managed to salvage a friendship from the ruins of their ill-fated romance, reports the Mirror.

In an interview with GQ, Nava said: "There actually was one more piece of Teri and Donny's relationship in the script, and I performed it. Teri leaves Donny a voicemail five months later. So I think, for me, I got closure because Teri did too."

Nava, who is herself transgender, expressed her delight that the deleted scene would have given a positive ending to a transgender TV character.

She elaborated: "That's what gave me so much comfort, knowing that they found peace with regards to their relationship. Teri got her happy ending, you know?

"Teri found a new man, she didn't lose her friends, she didn't lose her job, she didn't lose her smile. She's good. And I think that is remarkable, because so often we've seen stories of trans people that end with them broken."

Detailing the valuable insights she gained from Richard's own experiences, she shared: "Richard shared a lot with me. Richard was very generous with sharing, you know, pieces of his own experience and the real-life relationship that inspired this.

"This relationship between Teri and Donny, I almost don't even know how to convey how incredible it is for an actor to be able to go to the writer and be like, 'Hey, just tell me what it was like'."

She continued: "She's based on a real person, Richard had a relationship with a trans woman that inspired the story and so I think that allowed for a level of nuance and intricacy that still feels groundbreaking."