Long before he found himself exploring the cosmic side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Guardians of the Galaxy, James Gunn got his big break penning the screenplay for the 2002 live-action adaptation of Scooby-Doo. And, commemorating the fifteenth anniversary of its release, Gunn has taken to Facebook to reveal that it was originally slapped with an R-rating by the MPAA.
“I had loved the character of Scooby-Doo since I was a kid and was excited at the prospect of making a live action film with 2002’s cutting CGI technology(!!),” said Gunn. “Yes, it was not exactly what we planned going out – I had written an edgier film geared toward older kids and adults, and the studio ended pushing it into an clean cut children’s film. And, yes, the rumors are true – the first cut was rated R by the MPAA, and the female stars’ cleavage was CGI’d away so as not to offend. But, you know, such is life. I had a lot of fun making this movie, regardless of all that.”
Gunn also went on to share his recollections of the negative critical reception to the film, and the doors it opened for him when it proved to be a hit at the box office:
“I remember being bummed out that the reviews were pretty terrible. These days I might glance at the occasional review (admittedly, mostly only good ones), but back then I read EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. I also read everything written about the movie online, by, like, anybody, including bulletin board folks. It was a kind of film-self-involvement I’ve learned to avoid since, but needless to say it was not an exceptionally good day. But it was followed by, honestly, one of the best days of my life.
“At about 5:30 Saturday morning opening weekend Lorenzo DiBonaventura – the head of production at Warners, and one of the people who gave me my start – called me and woke me up at home to tell me we made 18 million the Friday before. Now that doesn’t seem to be all that much today – Guardians will make around that on a Thursday night alone – but back then it was enough to make the movie the biggest June opening ever. Until that moment, I thought if the movie came out and didn’t do well I’d be able to continue getting writing jobs, and my life was going to be the same. But in that one single moment I knew everything had changed. And it did. I was offered every movie you can imagine. Like, uh, the Jabberjaw movie, and The Jetsons movie, and the Captain Caveman movie. I was offered tons of money to do all of these things. So, of course, me being me, I chose to write Dawn of the Dead. Go figure out my brain, who knows.”
Scooby-Doo was followed by the 2004 sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, which was once again scripted by Gunn. Two further live-action made-for-TV prequels followed in 2009 and 2010, albeit with a new cast and creative team.
Originally published June 16, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
