Mike Myers Responds To Rumors That Dr. Evil Was Based On 'SNL' Boss

When it comes to rumors about Mike Myers’ “Austin Powers” franchise, the actor has one small piece of advice: “Oh, behave.”

While speaking with Vulture, Myers laid a particular rumor to rest about the origins of the Dr. Evil character. The “Saturday Night Live” alum addressed whether the “Austin Powers” antagonist was based on his former boss and “SNL” creator, Lorne Michaels.

“The Lorne of it is just a little tiny overlay,” Myers said. “I’m Canadian. He’s Canadian. He had an educated Canadian accent, and I have a Scarborough accent.”

Verne Troyer and Mike Myers star in "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me." Myers explained the inspiration behind Dr. Evil in a recent interview.

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In truth, the inspiration for Dr. Evil came from James Bond villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld, first played by actor Donald Pleasence in 1967’s “You Only Live Twice,” and was intended to be a comic twist on the character.

Myers was also asked about how the Austin Powers character emerged, telling Vulture, “I loved James Bond. And I thought that’s what I wanna do, a character like that. I studied James Bond movies inside and out, and I knew all the tropes.”

“And more than James Bond — which was at a little bit of a nadir; the series wasn’t so popular at that moment — I really wanted to do a parody of spy spoofs,” he continued. “I wanted it to have Coca-Cola reds and AT&T blues, Kodak yellows in this world, and then Dr. Evil’s world would be gray and black and sharp.”

Mike Myers in a scene from the film "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me." He explained how the titular character came to be in a recent interview.

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As for whether an “Austin Powers 4” is in the works, Myers remained mum on the beloved international man of mystery.

“I can neither confirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence of a project, should it exist or not exist,” he told Vulture.

While appearing on the “Tonight Show” in 2022, Myers gave a similar answer, adding that if such a project were on the table, he “would love to do it, of course. It’s fun.”

Without a definite answer on whether Myers is bringing Austin Powers out of his frozen state, we’ll have to wait and see if he lives to shag another day.