After 20 years, Scooby-Doo's most annoying movie mystery has finally been solved thanks to details about the near-mythical R-rated cut James Gunn worked on. First released on June 14th, 2002, Raja Gosnell and James Gunn's movie marks the first live-action Scooby-Doo franchise installment, which sees Mystery Incorporated reunite after a two-year hiatus to investigate strange happenings at a popular horror-themed tropical island resort. Despite a lukewarm critical reception upon release, Scooby-Doo 2002 aptly throws up several mysteries that have endured beyond the film's narrative, with the live-action Scooby-Doo garnering a cult following over the years as a result.

Midway through Scooby-Doo, Mary Jane (Isla Fisher), Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Shaggy (Matthew Lillard), and Scooby (Neil Fanning) attempt to call Spooky Island's coast guards after witnessing demons dragging several victims to the Daemon Ritus' underground chamber. Mary Jane tells them her "friends have been kidnapped" before the two coast guards taking the call hang up and begin maniacally cackling to each other. This scene has been a continued source of debate for Scooby-Doo audiences over the last two decades, with many fans rightly querying what the coast guard's true motivations were for ignoring the gang's distress call.

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However, after 20 years, Scooby-Doo's most annoying movie mystery has finally been solved. In a revealing YouTube interview with Scooby-Doo editor Kent Beyda, it's been confirmed that the lost R-rated cut that was thought not to exist, even by James Gunn himself, could technically be out there. Beyda confirmed that the coast guards were definitely possessed in line with most of Spooky Island already being under demonic control at the point in the movie, closing up an annoying plot-hole that had sparked two decades of debate. Much of this speculation is owed to the open-ended nature of the coast guard scene, with the two guards cackling at each other and mocking Mary Jane's call for help. Theories for their callous indifference had ranged from the guards being on Emile Mondavarious' (Rowan Atkinson) payroll to simply dismissing Mary Jane's call as a prank by annoying kids, alongside the pair themselves being possessed by the island's demons.

Click here to watch the full interview with Kent Beyda on YouTube.

Scooby Doo 2002

Presenters JayBee & Milly, in association with smASH's Ashton Hardy spoke at length with Beyda, who also edited the sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, to get the confirmation. While a relatively minor scene in the context of Scooby-Doo 2002's zany, possession-centric plot, the question of the Spooky Island coast guard's true motivations has plagued the Scooby-Doo fandom for 20 years. The answer settles part of a fascinating production story of the family-friendly movie that could have been considerably more adult if the editor's cuts hadn't been made after studio demands.

Due to the coast guard's eyes not turning green (although the guard tower is lit up by a green hue), this credible possession theory could not be proven until now. Yet Beyda's confirmation that Spooky Island's coast guards were already possessed finally puts to bed a question that has annoyed the live-action Scooby-Doo fandom immeasurably since Gosnell and Gunn's live-action movie was first released. While the Mystery Inc. gang is able to thwart Scrappy Doo's plans for world domination within Scooby-Doo's neat 86-minute runtime, it has taken 20 years for one of the film's more annoying mysteries to finally be put to bed.

Next: Every Unmade James Gunn Movie (Including Scooby-Doo 3)