Austin Powers' identity crisis

Would an Austin Powers by any other name have been as shagadelic? We came close to finding out. Turns out The Spy Who Shagged Me was only the last in a series of potential titles for Mike Myers' swinging spy romp. You've probably already heard how an early version was called Austin Powers 2: The Wrath of Khan. New Line went so far as to contact Paramount about using the Star Trekish title. But when Paramount nixed that idea, New Line went to bat for Myers' second choice: Austin Powers 2: Electric Boogaloo. (Bonus points to those who actually saw the sequel to 1984's Breakin'.) However, before that was finalized, Myers and director Jay Roach decided to turn to spoofs of James Bond movie titles: Austinpussy was an early choice. Even after they settled on The Spy Who Shagged Me, they considered working the alternate titles into the film. ''In one script, we were going to begin the movie by running each title, and then a voice would come on, saying 'This name has been disallowed because the producers couldn't obtain the rights,''' says Roach. (The joke was eventually scrapped.) An early suggestion for the next sequel: Austin Powers 3: The Bride of Mini-Me.