Does the prospect of a fourth Austin Powers film make you randy, baby? It certainly has us feeling shagadelic, especially since Mike Myers recently said that the chances of the project actually happening look "good." Granted, we don't even know for sure whether or not a fourthquel is definitively happening, but we've come up with some things that Austin Powers 4 must include for the film to be its grooviest.
Spoofs Of Jason Bourne And Daniel Craig's Bond
Austin Powers in Goldmember came out one month after The Bourne Identity and four years before Casino Royale. Both of those films ushered in a new era for the spy genre and have influenced many other spy films that have followed. Given that, it would be a travesty if a future Austin Powers made no reference to Jason Bourne or Daniel Craig's Bond in an upcoming film.
Granted, it would be a challenge to mesh those worlds in with the Austin Powers series, especially given the films are influenced by a bulk of classic spy thrillers. Still, the series made a pseudo nod to Mission: Impossible by having Tom Cruise play Austin Powers in the fake film "Austinpussy," so the writers could figure something out. Perhaps Austin finds it a challenge to remain a spy in the rough and tumble modern era?
How Austin Powers In Goldmember Is Explained
Perhaps the biggest thing that would make Austin Powers 4 difficult to create is Austin Powers In Goldmember. The third film establishes Dr. Evil and Austin as brothers, and even alludes that parts or perhaps all of the story was actually Steven Spielberg's film within the film, Austinpussy. Needless to say, the film presented some somewhat difficult questions that fans may expect Austin Powers 4 to answer.
That said, the Austin Powers franchise has had to deal with a few plot inconsistencies before. We know that because the films often outright stated it and instructed the audience to ignore those inconsistencies and enjoy each respective film. The fanbases for most franchises wouldn't let creators off the hook that easy, but Austin Powers fans probably will. After all, we're in it for laughs and whacky characters, not elaborate explanations of time travel and how Goldmember's gold winky turned on that device.
Evil Scotty
While we don't know for sure if all of Goldmember was real, it does seem as though Evil Scotty is. The film's final moments show Dr. Evil's son dressed like his father performing a dance ala Michael Jackson. The once rebellious son had gone off the deep end, and we would love to see what happened next.
Dr. Evil is the definitive villain of the Austin Powers series, but Seth Green's transformation at the end of Goldmember has the potential for a hilarious performance. It'd also give audiences the thrill of seeing if Scott is better or worse than his father at the whole being evil thing. After all, Scott usually had the most logical methods of defeating Austin Powers, so we think he'd stand a decent chance of defeating him.
A Healthy Dose Of Celebrity Cameos
It's staggering the amount of A-list celebrity cameos the Austin Powers franchise was able to pull at its peak. Britney Spears, Tom Cruise, Danny DeVito, Jerry Springer, Elvis Costello, the list is truly staggering. One would imagine Austin Powers 4 could pull in an equal level of talent, especially given the franchise's legacy, but could it aim even higher?
It's possible, although it's really subjective to the audience watching what would raise the bar. Featuring a past President of the United States would be pretty impressive, but even just a wide variety of top A-list talent would suffice. We're sure there are plenty of young celebrities who grew up watching the films, so it may not be that hard to get some of them as it would seem.
How The Film References Mini-Me
The death of Verne Troyer was a tragic thing, and his absence will surely be felt in Austin Powers 4. Mini Me was a staple character in the second and third installments in the franchise, and it's hard to imagine Dr. Evil without him. It would be interesting to see how the film addressed the character's absence, or if it chose to press on another way.
One would imagine Mike Myers has a plan, especially given how he honored the character on Jimmy Kimmel Live. An actor's death is always a tricky situation when it comes to what happens to the character, especially when their on-screen future was left unresolved. Whatever plan is in place, we can hope that it's in line with something Verne Troyer would've agreed with and honors the work he put in on the series years ago.
Limited Time Travel
Time travel has been a fun element of the Austin Powers franchise, and while Austin traveling to the '80s has potential, it'd be more interesting to keep things in the present. Austin Powers has been gone a long time, so it would be great to see how he's faring in the late 2010s. Would Austin Powers still be the smooth-talking super spy he's been thus far or has he become a dinosaur stuck in the past?
These questions seem more interesting than any that could be answered by time travel. The world has changed quite a bit in the years since Austin Powers films were made that it'll be just as interesting to see how the world responds to his return as it would be to see him actually living in it. Hopefully, audiences still find his antics as groovy as they did back then.
Top Tier Double Entendre and Innuendo
Double entendre and innuendo form the backbone that supports each Austin Powers film. Few comedies have played on those two touchstones of humor as well, but the bar has definitely been raised since the last film in what will get a laugh from audiences. Mike Myers has been keeping up with his character acting over the years well enough, but can he still deliver some classic Powers innuendo?
That's perhaps the biggest question mark one could have about Austin Powers 4. So many of the franchise's staple jokes have been played out by the end of the third film, one has to wonder if a fourth installment can go back to the well once more? If that's not the case, can the character survive some tweaks to the formula? We're not sure, but we'd pay the price of admission to find out.
Right now Austin Powers 4 isn't a sure-fire thing, but perhaps after director Jay Roach is freed up something concrete might be announced. In the meantime, Austin Powers fans can reminisce on the time Dr. Evil was on The Tonight Show.
