15 Austin Powers Behind-The-Scenes Facts (2024)

15 Jim Carrey Almost Played Dr.Evil

Myers didn’t originally intend to play Dr.Evil himself, in fact, he originally envisioned Jim Carrey at the helm of the character. Carrey was interested, but it unfortunately interfered with the shooting of Liar Liar. Plus we would’ve missed out on Myers Lorne Michaels impression (or is it Dana’s?)

14 There Was Almost An Animated Austin Powers Series

Shortly after the release of the second movie, New Line Cinema planned to release an animated series starring the shagadelic swinger on HBO. They claimed to be excited about the project, but didn’t want to release too many details. Eventually the show plans slowly dissolved, and were never heard of again.

13 Rob Lowe And Austin Powers

Rob and Myers were already friends from Wayne's World, but he secured the part of young Number 2 by doing his spot on Robert Wagner impression for Myers while the two were golfing. Rob actually appeared in the first movie too in a scene where he attends the bachelor party of John Smith, the henchman whose head is eaten by mutated sea bass.

12 Myer’s Chair On Set Had A Different Name On It

Mike’s director's chair on the set had "Sir Stinky Bottom, Viscount of Stinkvania in the Bottom-ic Empire" written on it.

It must have been very awkward when the real Sir Stinky Bottom, Viscount of Stinkvania in the Bottom-ic Empire came to visit the set.

11 There Was An Austin Powers MTV Special That Aired First

Before the first movie was released, Austin appeared in an MTV hour special called “Austin Powers Electric Psychedelic puss*cat Swingers Club.” The special was used to promote the film and featured Austin’s list of “Fab Birds From the 90’s.”

10 MGM Nearly Took Legal Action Against Goldmember

MGM must not be very fun to talk to at parties, because they threatened legal action over the name being too similar to the Bond film Goldfinger. Goldmember’s alt titles included “License to Shag, Live and Let Shag, Never Say Member Again, and You Only Shag Thrice.” Luckily, MGM came around in exchange for Die Another Day and The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers to have trailers before Goldmember screenings.

9 Sean Connery Was Considered For The Role Of Nigel Powers

Don’t get me wrong, Michael Caine did a fantastic job as Austin Powers' father, Nigel Powers. But did you know Sean Connery was considered for the role first? Connery may not have the same comedic timing as Caine, but as the original James Bond, it would have been one hell of a cameo.

8 Myers Is Interested In Making A Fourth Installment

In an interview with SiriusXM Myers admitted that he would love to continue the Austin power’s franchise. He also teased at the possible existence of its fruition by saying “I can neither confirm nor deny the existence or non-existence of such a project, should it exist or not exist.”

7 Colin Quinn Almost Played Scott Evil

No one could have pulled off Scott Evil like Seth Green, but SNL’s Colin Quinn almost had the chance. He says he regrets passing on the role that went to the much younger Green, but added that “chronologically Scott Evil would have been my age at the time so it would have made sense.”

6 How Myers Found Austin’s Voice

According to Newsweek, Myers found the voice of Austin Powers about a year before the film’s release, asking his wife “Do I make you horny?” and “Do you swing?” His wife promptly told him to shut up and write it down. He cranked out the first script in just 3 weeks.

5 The First Cut Of Goldmember Was Over 3 Hours Long

The original cut of the film was 3 hours long, and Myers said he could watch it and laugh all the way through, but that may be hard for some audiences to swallow. One of the cutest scenes cut is a music video of various characters singing Susanna Hoffs song 'What's It All About Austin?'

4 Dr.Evil Quotes Lenny Bruce

The line “Really, there's nothing more pathetic than an aging hipster.” is actually taken directly from the boundary-pushing legendary comic Lenny Bruce. Thankfully, unlike Lenny Bruce, Dr.Evil was never arrested for his jokes.

3 Nigel Powers’ Hatred Of The Dutch Is Based On Myers’ Father

Myers said in an interview with USA Today that Nigel Powers’ hatred of the Dutch was inspired by his actual father. He said "That idea came from my actual father, who was English, and who had an ax to grind with the Hawaiians because 'they bloody murdered Captain Cook in his sleep.' We couldn't even have a pineapple in the house. So I thought it would be funny if Austin's father, Nigel, had a problem with the Dutch — who nobody has a grudge with."

2 Goldmember Was Inspired By A Real Person

The idea for the Goldmember character came to Myers when a man with a Dutch accent appeared on the late-night HBO show Real Sex, which Myer’s was watching while writing. The man spoke of his “sex barn north of Rotterdam,” and the rest is comedy history.

1 A Large Chunk Of The First Movie Was Improvised

According to Myers, the dialogue in the original movie was 30% - 40% improvised. This includes the “shhh” scene between Dr.Evil and Scott.

The first rule of improv is “Shhh and.”

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Top Image: New Line Cinemas