Kangaroo Jack Star Confirms There Is An R-Rated Cut

It is widely known that the 2003 movie Kangaroo Jack began its life as an R-rated mobster movie called Down Under, but could the original edition that was film get a re-release in the wake of the Snyder Cut? Star Jerry O'Connell said in no uncertain terms that an R-rated cut of the movie exists that features a lot more adult content, including his own full frontal nudity. Don't get your hopes up for it to be released, however.

"There is an R-rated cut of Kangaroo Jack out there. There is full frontal involved," he told Kinda Funny. "We need the O'Connell cut." Unfortunately, however, O'Connell remarked that "it's never gonna happen."

O'Connell mentioned in the interview that the first version of the movie featured a lot of cursing and nudity to capture its R rating. The executives decided to change the movie to a PG rating after testing it.

"They immediately tested the movie the second they had a cut of it. And everyone was like, 'I was going to take my kids to this!' They thought it was about a talking kangaroo," he said.

O'Connell said he was upset to learn that the film executives changed the film to make it more appealing to children. "Wow, what a bummer. I thought this was going to be my Reservoir Dogs," O'Connell said.

Also in the interview, O'Connell recalled how when he was informed that Kangaroo Jack would change to a PG rating, he was told this might impact the essence of the film. But O'Connell said he didn't care; he was in his 20s and it was one of his first big-budget movies. He said he trusted producer Jerry Bruckheimer and others to make the right decision for the movie.

Kangaroo Jack is a surprisingly adult kids movie. The story follows two men played by Jerry O'Connell and Anthony Anderson who are recruited by a mob boss to deliver $10,000 to a contact in Australia. When they get Down Under, they accidentally hit a kangaroo with their car and they put a jacket on the animal as they pose to take a picture. Unbeknownst to them, the kangaroo is not dead, and he wakes up and hops off with the money.

This is an Australian legend, only that it was said to be two tourists who lost their passports instead of a wad of cash meant for a mob boss. Kangaroo Jack, the finished film that released with a PG rating, is filled with sexual innuendo and violence.

One of the main reshoots for Kangaroo Jack to change the tone and rating was a bizarre dream sequence involving the kangaroo who performs a rap. O'Connell said he was watching cartoons one day before the movie came out and he was surprised to see the ad for Kangaroo Jack featuring this sequence.

Kangaroo Jack also stars Christopher Walken and Michael Shannon as two mobsters. If you're looking for more information on the change and reshoots, check out this excellent 2003 story from The Los Angeles Times.

An animated comedy called Kangaroo Jack: G'Day USA was released in 2004.