Here's what Austin St. John, the man behind Jason Lee Scott in the Power Rangers franchise, thinks his Red Ranger would be doing in 2019. Jump-kicking its way onto the bulky television screens of 1993, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers become an instant worldwide success with its vivid, colorful style, high octane martial arts and ridiculous stream of grotesque monsters. Although the original incarnation of the franchise perhaps marked the peak of Power Rangers' popularity, the series has continued throughout the years and found new generations of youngsters to entertain with an ever-revolving cast of characters and Zords to thrill viewers (and turn into toys).
Austin St. John was one of the original crop of Rangers, portraying the Red Ranger and overall group leader, Jason Lee Scott. Since first departing the role in 1994, Austin has returned to the Power Rangers franchise on a number of occasions, taking on the guise of the Gold Ranger in Power Rangers Zeo and starring alongside fellow original cast member, Amy Jo Johnson, in Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, among other credits. The actor has a number of projects currently in post-production and last year featured alongside Mischa Barton in Monsters At Large.
In an interview conducted by Underground Nation magazine, Austin was asked what he thought Jason would be doing in the fictional world of Power Rangers in 2019, as the franchise approaches its 30th anniversary, and the actor replied:
"I would see him in a very quiet behind the scenes leadership role. I would see him in an elite special operations unit, behind the scenes, where nobody knew he existed, running things quietly, in command of his operations unit, letting all of the flashy guys have the front line, letting all of the known special operations unit with all the blame, be in the front, letting them have all the news and the media. And he would quietly, with his elite team, be out doing the real work, every day, and never needing credit for it."
It certainly sounds like Austin has put some serious thought into the fate of his most famous character, and his pitch is very much in keeping with Jason's established character and moral code. The concept of an Black Ops-style Power Rangers unit may not fit completely alongside the franchise's usual kid-friendly model, but the 2017 live-action Power Rangers movie proved that there is merit in a a slightly more mature take on the story. If there are any 30th anniversary plans to reunite some of the classic cast members and do a follow-up to their characters' lives in the years after Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, many fans of the original series would likely provide a willing, if considerably older, audience.
It's perhaps testament to the longevity and popularity of the Power Rangers series that the likes of Austin St. John are still discussing their characters almost three decades later. Many TV shows that are aimed at children and have a limited budget fall by the wayside as quickly as they appeared, but Power Rangers has not only continued in various incarnations, but fans still go back and revisit the original, much-loved cast that laid the foundations for what was to come.
Source: Underground Nation