Movies are an integral part of the holiday season. Each year, people sit down to watch their favorite Christmas films, be they traditional fare like The Muppet Christmas Carol and A Christmas Story or more unconventional choices, like Die Hard, Batman Returns, or The Wizard of Oz. For many, It’s A Wonderful Life is a must-watch movie each holiday season as well, but this year Amazon Prime Video is coming under fire for a change to the Christmas classic, a change that many see as completely breaking the movie.

This holiday season, fans discovered that a version of the 1946 Frank Capra directed, James Stewart starring classic is missing a key sequence in the movie. This “abridged” version of It’s A Wonderful Life seemingly inexplicably cuts approximately 22 minutes from the film — the key “Pottersville” sequence where Clarence, the guardian angel second class shows George (Stewart) a reality in which he never existed. It’s a pivotal scene that completely changes George and the movie and without it, fans aren’t happy but the edit isn’t quite what it seems on the surface.

Fans Are Livid With Amazon For Changing It’s A Wonderful Life (But There Is Actually a Complicated Legal Reason For It)

On social media, fans of the classic movie have been swift to condemn Amazon for what they see as destroying one of the most heartwarming and essential holiday movies ever made. Some called the streamer out for removing the “Pottersville” sequence on the basis of it being the film’s religious element while others called it “sacrilege” and said that streaming services can’t and shouldn’t be trusted due to what is seen by many as subjective editing that leaves the film without any real meaning. Some even went so far as to claim that the abridged version on Amazon Prime Video is part of a larger effort to “cancel Christmas”.

However, there is actually a reason for the abridged version of It’s A Wonderful Life on Amazon Prime Video. As it turns out, It’s A Wonderful Life has an extremely complicated copyright situation that is at the center of why the film’s heart is cut in certain versions. The film itself is a loose adaptation of the short story “The Greatest Gift” by Philip Van Doren Stern which is itself loosely based on A Christmas Carol. The crucial “Pottersville” scene in the movie is very close to what is in “The Greatest Gift”, just expanded.

In 1974, the distributor for It’s A Wonderful Life failed to renew the film’s copyright which sent it into public domain, which is why television stations were able to air the film freely during the holidays without having to pay royalties. However, changes to copyright law in the 1990s complicated things as the actual rights to the short story “The Greatest Gift” had been properly maintained. Republic Pictures, which gained distribution rights or the film, in turn used the copyrights to the short story (as well as the film’s score) to assert control over the rights as related to distribution. Cutting the pivotal “Pottersville” scene gets around those rights because it’s the part of the movie that is closest to the short story and, thus, the protected portion of the film. Arguably, the abridged version is a way to avoid royalties — and it’s worth noting that broadcasters have edited the film similarly for years to varying degrees.

Of course, while fans are discovering the “butchered” abridged version of It’s A Wonderful Life on Amazon Prime Video, it’s actually not the only version available to stream. The complete version of the film is also available to stream on the platform, both as a black and white and as a colorized version of the film. Those wanting to make sure they avoid the edited version of the film — or those wanting to see how it plays without the critical “Pottersville” scene — just need to look for the version marked “Abridged Edition”. That version is also available to watch for free while the others require a subscription.

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