Inspector Gadget (partially found deleted scenes of film; 1999)
Early logo of the film.
Status: Partially Found
Inspector Gadget was a popular animated series from 1983 created by DIC Entertainment about a bumbling detective with gadgets implanted in him, his intelligent niece Penny and dog Brain, and his will to stop Dr. Claw and his evil organization of agents, called M.A.D.
In the mid-1990s, Disney bought the rights to make a live-action film about the show, and in 1999, the film was released. It starred Matthew Broderick in the role of the titular character, and Rupert Everett as the antagonist. Despite being a modest success, the film received unfavorable reviews from critics and fans of the show.[1]
Deleted Scenes
The film's original cut was 110 minutes and had several deleted scenes cut from the final film due to test audience reactions, sexual innuendos, and drug/alcohol references in order to stay family friendly.[2]
According to the film's director, David Kellogg: Yes there were early, longer versions of the film shown at test screenings. There are no saved (work print) versions of these early cuts. I wish there was because many people have asked about this. And it would provide clarity. For the final version, mostly scenes were tightened (trimmed heads and tails, and sometimes a bit of dialog within a scene) without removing any entire scenes. Perhaps the most extreme trim was shortening the moment when Gadget comes back to life at the junk yard (if you remember that moment). I personally disagreed with the studio about too much trimming (and this junkyard scene in particular), but the studio execs favored the shorter version. Pace can be a difficult thing to gauge, particularly when you watch the film over and over and over. As well, sometimes you don't believe you’re progressing if you to go back to an earlier version. False thinking. I recall the test screenings becoming less and less successful as we shortened the film. The final version was not test screened. The first test screening was the best audience response.
The deleted scenes included:
- An alternate, grittier looking opening.
- A longer version of the surgery scene.
- A longer version of Gadget and Brenda's talk, only seen as thought bubbles in the final.
- A scene of Gadget making Penny lunch.
- A scene of Gadget walking down a street and testing out his gadgets.
- A scene from the Riverton Police Gala featuring two singers.
- A scene of Gadget directing traffic and blowing a whistle with a third hand attached to his hat.
- A scene of Claw trying to get Robo-gadget into his limo after he caused chaos throughout the city.
- Unused shots of Dr. Claw's lair.
- Cut shot of the Robo-gadget fight scene. This scene depicts Gadget and his clone, Robo-Gadget riding in shopping carts. Robo-Gadget quickly gives him a martini, a pair of glasses, and a cigarette. Gadget then spits and throws them away.
- A scene showing Robo-gadget's severed head sitting in ice next to fish heads in an outdoor market.
Availability
Clips of these scenes were included in an Italian teaser trailer, an early trailer, and a behind the scenes segment, but the remainder of the scenes, and possibly any more cut content, still remains unseen. It is currently unknown if the original cut of the film will ever be released.