Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (or simply Austin Powers) is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Jay Roach, and the first installment in the "Austin Powers" series. It stars franchise co-producer and writer Mike Myers as Austin Powers and Dr. Evil, Powers' arch-enemy. Supporting roles include Elizabeth Hurley, Robert Wagner, Seth Green, and Michael York. The film is an affectionate spoof of the James Bond films and other popular culture from the 1960s. The film, which cost US$16.5 million, opened on May 2, 1997, grossing US$53 million from its North American release
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me only gave part of the title ("Austin Powers: The Spy Who—") before cutting off with one of a range of slightly suggestive scenes from the film, such as Austin squeezing out the contents of a massage oil bottle. The post-watershed adverts, aired later in the evening, gave the full title. There were also two variations of the posters; one of them asterisked out the middle of the offending word. Other posters had named the film as "Austin Powers 2". According to the "Collins English Dictionary", the use of the word "shag" in the film's title helped to increase the word's