Speaking with Lindsey Collins—producer of the massive Disney blockbuster that hit theaters this weekend, John Carter—recently, Collider’s Steve Weintraub was informed of some long-lost buried treasure of sorts.
Apparently Galaxy Quest, the fantastic 1999 sci-fi comedy starring Tim Allen, Alan Rickman, Sigourney Weaver, Sam Rockwell, Tony Shalhoub, and Daryl Mitchell (as well as a slew of other familiar faces) as the stars of an old sci-fi TV series (a la Star Trek) who inadvertently find themselves beamed out to space to help very real aliens put an end to the ongoing threats of an evil being named Sarris and his crew, was initially an R-rated comedy before being cut down to the PG version fans know and love.
Collins explained how she came to find out this information while dining with Weaver:
“We had lunch with Sigourney, who was telling us that there actually used to be an R-rated version of that movie which was awesome.
It was the director’s cut and it was R-rated and everybody was swearing and there were sex scenes, and the whole thing. They didn’t know what to do with it, so they had to re-edit the whole thing and made it what it is today. We were like, “˜How do we get our hands on the R-rated version of Galaxy Quest?’ She said “˜I don’t know!’ and we were like, “˜Come on, Sigourney!'”
I’m a total advocate for the R-rated motion picture. Far too often these days do studios force filmmakers to make a movie PG-13 to appeal to a larger audience, thus hoping to increase the amount of money that ends up in their pockets. It’s led to awful installments in great R-rated franchises such as Live Free or Die Hard and Terminator Salvation, with the possibility of The Expendables 2 soon joining that conversation.
All of that said, Galaxy Quest isn’t part of that conversation because it’s not a movie you’d ever expect to be rated R. It’s perfectly fine as it is, and will always be so…but that also makes this new knowledge of a more mature cut of the movie so very intriguing. An R-rated version of a PG movie? Unheard of!
It’s become a constant these days for PG-13 comedies and horror flicks to release “unrated” cuts when the movie hits Blu-ray and DVD. Usually these are just money-grabs and useless, but sometimes the adult-aimed version can be fun. Before it became the norm we saw movies like Daredevil or Michael Bay’s Armageddon and Pearl Harbor do it as well. But rarely does the presence of one so random as this surface.
Which brings us to the big question asked above: where in the sweetest of Hells is this R-rated version of Galaxy Quest, and how to we get our eyes on it?!
DreamWorks released the film, so it would be up to them to release some kind of special edition with it on there. A new Deluxe Edition and the Blu-ray version of the movie were released in 2009, so they do still know the movie exists. Let’s just hope they didn’t destroy all copies of it.
Would you want to see an R-rated version of Galaxy Quest?
[Source: Collider]
OMG Amazing!!! Yes!
Comment by Cc — March 10, 2012 @ 1:27 pm
That makes a little sense. In one scene Weaver’s character clearly says “Fuck that!” if you watch her lips but the line was dubbed over with “Forget that!” or something or another.
Comment by Bobby Morgan — March 10, 2012 @ 1:28 pm
Would it involve a nude scene with Sigourney? Â If “yes,” then definitely. Â If not, then not so much.
Comment by Tbplayer — March 10, 2012 @ 3:02 pm
I WANT TO SEE THIS VERSION RELEASE ITÂ IMMEDIATELYÂ DREAMWORKS!
Comment by FAT_ORANGE_TABBY — March 10, 2012 @ 3:22 pm
I love this film. I absolutely love everything about it. While I like the idea of an R-rated version I don’t know if I would like it honestly.Â
Next time you watch the movie, the scene when they get to the “chompers” and Weaver says “Well screw that! This episode was poorly written!” if you pay close attention she actually says “Well fuck that!” and they add in the screw in post.Â
Oh wait Bobby Morgan already mentioned that haha sorry hadn’t read the other responses yet before posting.Â
I think it might be neat but I don’t know that the movie needs all that stuff but I am curious.
Comment by GeekVariety — March 10, 2012 @ 9:15 pm
I would LOVE to see an R-rated version. LOVE. Just like the commenter below said, they clearly overdubbed the F work in that one scene; I always wondered what the story was with that. Damn, would I love for this to happen. It’s one of my all-time favorite movies.Â
Comment by Annie711pm — March 11, 2012 @ 6:56 am
That would definitely be a movie I’d add to my collection!
Comment by Anonymous — March 11, 2012 @ 3:52 pm
Would buy it in a heartbeat!
Comment by Allen Batson — March 11, 2012 @ 7:10 pm
I think I’d like a sequel more than an R-rated version, but that’s just me.
Comment by Travis LeBlanc — March 12, 2012 @ 1:00 pm
Well there is a line where Tim Allen’s voice says “shit” but his lips say “fuck.” And then of course the barely acknowledged stoned Tony Shaloub…I believe Sigourney has a few choice expletives as well in the scenes looking for the shutdown button. If you watch, you can tell. Also I will totally buy it again (so, a third time) if they release the R-rated version on Blu-Ray because Galaxy Quest is the bomb diggety.
Comment by Karina M — March 12, 2012 @ 1:58 pm
Would love to see an R-rated version – especially if Alan Rickman has a sex scene!
Comment by mampdx — March 12, 2012 @ 1:44 pm
“An R-rated version of a PG movie? Unheard of!”
Really? Â Ever hear
of a little film called “Amadeus”? It only won eight Academy Awards,
including Best Picture. It was released
later with an R-rated Director’s Cut. The
biggest reason for the R-rating was that Mrs Mozart shows her breasts. Other
than that, I don’t remember much difference.
Besides, I’m not surprised there could be an R-rating for
“Galaxy Quest”. There are several instances of lip-reading certain
words, but the audio has been dubbed something less profane. Here are two examples, both of which are
verified at the Internet Movie DataBase for this film:
At the beginning, after Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen
arrives), Tommy Webber (Daryl Mitchell) says “you are so full of it, manâ€. Yet, if you read his lips, he uses the
s-word.
Towards the end, as Jason and Tawny Madison (Sigourney
Weaver) get to the room with the “chompersâ€.Â
Tawny is heard saying “Screw that!â€, even though she is clearly using
the F-bomb.
Also, one of the deleted scenes shows how her uniform
gets unzipped with her cleavage showing.Â
Not an R-rated scene, but a bit too risqué for a PG-rating.
I, personally, would LOVE to see a Director’s cut of this
film with all the restored profanity and some of the better deleted scenes
restored (like the scene I mentioned above, or the cut scene of Dr Lazarus’
bedroom and toilet). I just don’t want
the added stuff to ruin the film. More
often that not, a Director’s Cut with additional footage isn’t as good as the
original.
Comment by that guy that did that thing — March 12, 2012 @ 3:30 pm
Some version of the original must be out there. I specifically remember, the very first time I saw the movie, Gwen saying “Fuck that!” at the chompers, which, you have to admit, is one of the more genius lines ever to come out of Hollywood. Every other time I’ve seen it, it was edited, and I’ve been disappointed every time. I just wish I could remember the first time I saw it, might have been DVD, premium cable… who knows. But it must be out there.
Comment by CJ — September 12, 2012 @ 2:20 pm
The original version had that in it but for some reason they changed it on DVD release. You can get away with one “Fuck!” in a PG-13 movie. My guess is they were trying to tone it down a little but it totally ruined the scene.
Comment by Tony Adler — April 2, 2013 @ 5:36 pm
There are deleted scenes of the DVD that show it was cut from PG-13 to PG. Not R. One use of the F-Bomb, which they should have left in and a bit of sexyness from Gwen. They discuss the cuts from PG13. Not R.
Comment by bookon — December 8, 2013 @ 1:52 pm
Agree inasmuch as she was the MILF of MILFs in this one. Rowr.
But really the movie is just fine being the “Three Amigos In Space” it is. The man / tentacle sex is offscreen and is hilarious just that way (“oh that’s not right!”); and we don’t need more. And swearing is only good when it’s funny, like on South Park.
Exception: Sigourney dropping the F bomb over that poorly written episode. That would have been hilarious. Especially if no-one else had so much as sworn to G-d up to then.
Comment by Zimriel — December 8, 2013 @ 4:33 pm
As James Cameron taught us with that useless Hadley’s Hope scene in “Aliens”.
Comment by Zimriel — December 8, 2013 @ 4:35 pm
Don’t hold your breath; Disney doesn’t do ‘R’. Period. As long as they have their claws on that title, there’ll NEVER be an R-version.
Comment by Obakeinu — December 8, 2013 @ 8:16 pm
I’ve always had a weakness for Missy Pyle. I wonder…
Comment by epobirs — December 8, 2013 @ 8:26 pm
Meh.
Comment by cornmouse — December 9, 2013 @ 6:34 pm
YES!
Comment by John Seidel — December 9, 2013 @ 8:46 pm
I would love to see this! It would be Epic.
Comment by shannon smith — December 9, 2013 @ 11:35 pm
“Speaking with Lindsey Collins—producer of the massive Disney blockbuster that hit theaters this weekend, John Carter—recently” LOLOLOL WHAAAAT?
Comment by Googlyeyes — December 10, 2013 @ 6:13 am
If I was a filthy rich Hollywood tycoon in charge of a massive production company, I’d have directors re-shoot an re-edit pg-13 movies and make them R, just to be cool and unique. More blood in that shot. Breasts, pull them out! Profanity, fucking use it!
Comment by Googlyeyes — December 10, 2013 @ 6:20 am
They can, through their subsidiary, Touchstone Pictures!
Comment by Michael Young — December 10, 2013 @ 8:13 am
First Disney had nothing to do with Galaxy Quest, it was a Dreamworks film(first incarnation DW,not the current DW)
The film catalog of original incarnation of Dream Works belongs to Paramount. paramount release to DVD and Blu ray, since then paramount has license this out along with a number of other DW/par titles to WB for home video.
when Paramount parted ways with Dreamworks, spielberg kept the studios name, and Paramount kept the films.
Spielberg then got a distribution deal for the new DreamWorks at Disney.
Comment by hollywood90028 — December 10, 2013 @ 2:42 pm
If Ghostbusters can show a ghost giving Ray a blowjob, they can say fuck in Galaxy Quest. This movie would be so much more fantastic as PG-13 or R!
Comment by BeastieRunner — December 10, 2013 @ 2:57 pm
By all means release the r-rated version i want to see it.
Comment by Devon Embry — December 10, 2013 @ 5:23 pm
Yes
Comment by randyfraz — December 10, 2013 @ 6:23 pm
I think I remember hearing on the commentary that Tony Shalhoub’s character was supposed to be stoned during their space adventure but the drug references were removed in editing. This would explain a lot of his actions and comments (he’s the only one who doesn’t freak out then he finds out they’re really in outer space) along with the fact that he always seems to have the munchies.
Comment by don57 — December 11, 2013 @ 6:49 am
There was actually some Tim Allen nudity in the original release on VHS. When Allen is crawling around on the floor looking for his shoes, wearing only a white shirt, his “stuff” is hanging there plainly visible. On the DVD, it is blurred out.
Comment by terentiaj63 — December 11, 2013 @ 3:51 pm
What nobody seems to be thinking about is, if the decision to edit these scenes came too early in the post production, there would be no way to reconstruct an R rated version of the film. Does anyone even know if all the original rushes still exist? If they were never cut into an initial R rated version, and then were lost, there’s no way to get them back. If they still have all the initial rushes intact with audio, it’s possible, but then it would be very difficult to determine how to fit them within the plot of the theatrical release… potentially that could wind up being a very different movie just to maintain a realistic consistency with what was shot. Then there’s the possibility as usually happens with the audio tracks having a separate history and often not being suitable for use in the film because of shooting issues like “nat sound” and improper levels. These audio bits would have to be retaken, which means calling the original actors back into the studio for post. It could be a multi-million dollar headache and not worth it for the studio to pursue.
Comment by Ozzy Osgood — December 13, 2013 @ 9:03 am
The internet would eat that up. Does this company not know? They could make at least a few bucks from it. Most would see it for free though of course. Just the nature of multimedia these days.
Comment by Plazma Phantazma — December 14, 2013 @ 12:50 am
Does the rolling help?
Comment by underthepalms — December 14, 2013 @ 2:26 am
As if we were unable to determine that through the film. It seemed fairly obvious. Still, I’d love to see the alternate R-rated version.
Comment by Chartreuxe — December 14, 2013 @ 5:19 pm
Oh, yes, please. :)
Comment by Chartreuxe — December 14, 2013 @ 5:21 pm
While we’re dreaming, why can’t we have both?
Comment by Chartreuxe — December 14, 2013 @ 5:21 pm
I’m game. Where can I see the R-rated version?
Comment by David Parker — December 24, 2013 @ 6:50 pm
THat’d be an interesting film to see. I remember seeing the film as a kid and it was hilarious and fun but also thinking it could’ve been…a little more..raunchy maybe. IDK but it def. looked like the directors had toned it down for a money aspect. So I’d love to see a directors cut. Be interesting to see the scenes that where cut out.
Comment by kieran66 — December 31, 2013 @ 4:46 pm
I saw an R-Rated cut in the theater!
I went to see Galaxy Quest as soon as it was released in San
Francisco at the Loews’ theater in the Metreon (I believe some theaters get special releases and the Metreon was new). I saw an R-Rated version of the movie. It may not have been the original R-Rated cut with all the sex scenes left in (?), which is a version being discussed in this forum. It’s been a long time, some details are fuzzy, but here are some main scenes/tidbits I remember:
Yes, all the swear words were in the film.
The film’s story and cuts were a little different/darker: When Tim Allen’s character, Commander Taggart, defeat’s Sarris the first time, Sarris blows up the Thermians’ planet in retaliation. That is why you see a partial Thermian planet in the current PG cut of the film; Teb says,“We are all that is leftâ€â€¦ the Thermians on the ship were the last survivors after Commander Taggart goofed up the first confrontation with Sarris. I can see why the studio’s cut this part out. (A brilliant cut to make the story lighter. There was enough footage to re-cut the scenes for the current storyline. Nicely done).
Rock Monster scene: Alan Rickman’s character, Dr. Lazarus, tells Commander Taggart, “Well, you’re just gonna have to figure out what it wants. What is its motivation?†They eventually figure out the Rock Monster is sensitive to sound/any vibrations, that is why it attacked Commander Taggart. The PG extras has some of the scene, but there are several frames of the CG that are not rendered properly.
There was a longer scene between Sigourney and Tim while
they were shutting down the core reactor, but I don’t think it was a sex scene though, it may have been the extended version in the extras section of the PG release of the DVD where Sigourney opens her shirt for the green aliens.
When the crew first arrives at the ship, I remember seeing the Thermians take Dr. Lazarus to his room like on the PG version extras. I think they took Commander Taggert to his room first, I can’t remember exactly. I do remember the extended version of Tech Sgt Chen’s “Tech Talk” in the engine room. I don’t think the other small cut-scenes on the PG extras were in the R-Rated version I saw though.
I enjoyed both the R-Rated version and the current cut of the film. I would like to have the R-Rated/Unrated version too.
Comment by BaddKatt — January 6, 2014 @ 12:32 pm
John Carter actually wasn’t that bad. I was surprised when i actually saw it.
Comment by Cassidy S. — January 7, 2014 @ 7:14 pm
Even though a lot of people I know don’t think this was a funny movie, it’s one of my favorites. Sam Rockwell plays one of the funniest characters ever in a comedy movie. If they EVER decide to release the R-rated version, I’m going to be first in line to get it…..LOL
Comment by James — January 8, 2014 @ 8:25 pm
That’s actually exactly what it is. The Rated-R version used to be on cable before the changed it. That’s actually what I was expecting until it came on FIOS the other day and I watched it and didn’t hear her say it.
Comment by Patrick Morris — January 12, 2014 @ 11:58 am
I thought I saw that!!! I watched the movie a few months ago and I kept rewinding that scene because I could have sworn I “read” her lips that way!
Comment by Dan Flores — January 14, 2014 @ 7:44 pm
GTFO! An R-rated cut? I wants! Love that movie and would love to see what “could have been,” even if it’s not actually better than the original. Sometimes they are, sometimes not. I’d still love to see the original intent before studio butchery…
Comment by Michael Gmirkin — February 2, 2014 @ 4:38 pm
I immediately noticed that they had removed the “f-that” that Weaver says during the crusher scene at the end while they attempt to shut down the auto destruct, and replaced it with “screw that”. I also immediately new I had watched the wrong movie. Tell me where to get the real version.
Comment by ಠ_ಠ— February 19, 2014 @ 10:04 am
Wait . . . I could be gazing at Tim Allen’s dangly bits?!?
Comment by rose1957 — February 24, 2014 @ 3:02 pm
Only if you can find the original VHS release.
Comment by terentiaj63 — February 25, 2014 @ 9:54 am
Ya’ know, I knew something was up since I first saw it. Do you remember the “Chompers” scene? Sigourney’s line is “Screw that!” but if you look at her lips she is totally saying, “F*ck that!” :D
Comment by Jared Fulcher — February 28, 2014 @ 3:35 pm
There’s a sweetness of tone to the movie. It works great as an “all ages” film that adults and kids can both enjoy. This is one time where the studio was totally right in steering away from an “edgier” version.
Comment by Keith — March 6, 2014 @ 8:56 pm
there is a r version out i got the set that has both the r rated one and the pg13 one in one set
Comment by Alan Helms — April 3, 2014 @ 2:53 am
give me the movie now
Comment by olanzo — April 5, 2014 @ 8:37 pm
That would be epic.
Comment by MilkieBear — April 12, 2014 @ 2:38 am
You’re talking about a difference of 30-40 years, here. Ratings have changed significantly as people have become more uptight and politically-correct. What was PG in the 1980s could very possibly be an R in the 2010s.
Comment by Nyx_Cadavre — April 27, 2015 @ 12:03 am
Well I respectfully disagree with that.
Lord of the Rings should easily have been R and most superhero movies nowadays by 80s standards on violence alone. There’s been recorded evidence that the f-bomb has been in more PG-13 movies than ever before, too. BUT … there’s also some movies that are R for no apparent reason. If anything, the MPAA is way more political than it ever has been before.
But I do totally agree with you on the uptight and PC sentiment. = D
Comment by BeastieRunner — April 27, 2015 @ 1:18 pm
No, it was never in there in the theatrical release. It was rated PG then.
Comment by DarthTigris — May 11, 2015 @ 9:19 pm
There were a bunch of pot smoking scenes cut as well that are not on the DVD.
Comment by slone13 — August 28, 2015 @ 4:50 pm
Who do movies need curse words anyway? Just shows a lack of sophistication…
Comment by Steve Hartsock — December 5, 2015 @ 7:17 pm
With all due respect, you are wrong Ajvonline. The movie’s theatrical version IS rated PG like DarthTigris said and just like the article explains… Do you guys read? Yes, you can get away with one f-bomb in PG-13, but it was always rated PG, meaning her f-bomb that’s dubbed over “forget that” was meant for the rated R version…sheesh..noobs.
Comment by WhyDoesMURDOCHBlacklistSavage — November 6, 2017 @ 10:39 pm
I just did the same thing and was like…wait…google? lol…and here I am
Comment by WhyDoesMURDOCHBlacklistSavage — November 6, 2017 @ 10:40 pm