James Gunn has set the record straight about an allegedly R-rated cut of the live-action Scooby-Doo. Gunn, who is best known as the writer and director of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, wrote both the 2002 film and it's sequel, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. Both films were released with a PG rating, but the rumor that the original cut of the first movie was PG-13, or even R, has persisted since its release. Gunn confirmed the film's original intention, and rating, back in a 2017 Facebook post, but did not provide the full context until now.
Scooby-Doo picked up with the Mystery Inc. gang after they have had a falling out and disbanded, only to be forcefully reunited when they each receive a cryptic invitation to solve a mystery at a haunted island theme park. The movie starred Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, and Neil Fanning as the classic Hanna-Barbera characters, alongside a villainous Rowan Atkinson. Neither film was a critical success, clocking in at a 35 and 34 Metascore, respectively, but the first installment was a certified hit at the box office, grossing north of $275 million. Its sequel, however, was far less attended, making nearly $100 million less on a near-identical budget.
Related: Scooby-Doo: Top 10 Animated Movies, According To IMDb
Gunn answered a fan's question on Twitter about an eventual release of the R-rated Scooby-Doo, and shed some light on how the whole rating fiasco went down. Gunn confirms that the film was originally rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America, but that he never set out to write an adult movie. Apparently, the harsh rating was because of "one stupid joke the MPAA misinterpreted." The film eventually earned a PG-13 from the ratings board, but by then, a successful test screening skewed the film's target demo to a younger audience. This led to a third cut of the film removing any "offensive" material such as language, cleavage, and sexual situations - including a same-sex kiss between Daphne and Velma. You can read Gunn's full comments below:
This is not the first time that Gunn has expressed frustrations with how the franchise was marketed and received, and it's clear that he still harbors some ill will towards those who altered his original vision for the film. If it's true that the film's PG-13 cut was scrapped due to the outrage of "like 3 parents," then it's fair to wonder if a raunchier take would have provided the franchise with the legs to carry it past the single sequel, whose performance Gunn is lamenting.
Still, as Gunn says, those movies are beloved by a generation of kids. For many, it was their very first exposure to the enduring franchise and remains an oft-referenced piece of childhood nostalgia. That said, the mystery of what could have been with Gunn and director Raja Gosnell's original vision is, at the very least, an interesting one. Should the fabled R-rated Scooby-Doo ever come to light, it still wouldn't be anywhere near the weirdest thing the franchise has tackled recently. As Gunn notes, it's unlikely it'll ever be unearthed, but if the persistence of the Snyder-cut devotees is anything to go by, this is probably not the last we will hear about the R-rated Scooby-Doo that could have been.
Source: Jame Gunn via Twitter