Original artwork, not a still
Let me tell you a little story about a man named Shh! Shh! Even before you start, that was a pre-emptive "Shh!" Just know I have a whole bag of "Shh!" with your name on it.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is a villain being petty at exactly the moment he should be listening. Scott's plan is the sensible one, so Dr. Evil has no answer except to talk over him, and the bit stretches until the silence itself is the joke. The pre-emptive "Shh!" is the line fans still quote to cut off an argument before it starts.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Austin Powers: International Man of MysteryShow the scene
Dr. Evil has put Austin Powers and Vanessa Kensington in an "easily escapable situation involving an overly elaborate and exotic death": a dipping mechanism that lowers them toward a tank of mutated sea bass, the best he could do after being told sharks with laser beams were out of reach. His son Scott, who wants to shoot them on the spot, offers to fetch a gun. His father answers "Scott, you just don't get it, do ya?", then meets each of Scott's attempts to speak with a "Shh!", tells a knock-knock joke whose answer is "Shh!", and ends with the story of a man named Shh. Austin and Vanessa escape on the dental floss Austin keeps in his pocket.
Sources (3)
- Wikiquote: Austin Powers: International Man of MysteryDr. Evil section and Dialogue, the sea bass tank sceneReference checked
- Springfield! Springfield!: Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery scriptScene after the sea bass tank, just before the floss escapeReference checked
- Austin Powers Wiki (Fandom): Dr. Evil1997 (International Man of Mystery) sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
