It’s been two years since Josh Duhamel found one of his best roles yet inBandit, and in honor of the movie’s anniversary,Screen Ranthas exclusive deleted scenes.Duhamel starred in the 2022 crime thrilleras Gilbert Galvan Jr, a real-life robber known as The Flying Bandit who holds the record for the most consecutive robberies in Canadian history. Also starring Mel Gibson, Elisha Cuthbert and Néstor Carbonell,Banditwas a hit upon release, garnering largely positive reviews for Duhamel’s performance and Allan Ungar’s stylish direction.
As the movie has hit its two-year anniversary,Screen Rantis proud to exclusively debut20 minutes of deleted scenes fromBandit. The first scene is an extended version of Gilbert’s escape from prison near the start of the movie, quickly changing out of his prison uniform and attempting to hitchhike to the nearest town. The second scene is a cut interaction between Carbonell’s Detective John Snydes as he visits Diamond Dave in the hopes of finding Gilbert, only to be stalled by Dave’s girlfriend as she tries to verify Snydes' status as an officer.
The next scene serves as an extended version of Gilbert’s first meeting with Cuthbert’s Andrea at a local shelter, in which he tries to flirt with her, and she responds positively to it. The video then continues with a brief extended scene of Gilbert quitting his ice cream stand job out of frustration and discovering The Playmate bar,where he will first meet Mel Gibson’s Tommy Kay and rejoin the world of crime. It then transitions into an extended scene of Gilbert and Andrea moving in together, in which she expresses her concerns of how he handles his money as he pays the movers, though has her fears soothed by him and they have a tender moment.
The next scene is also an extended version of the montage of Gilbert’s robberies, in which he practices his routine of approaching bank tellers in a bathroom mirror, while also humorously encountering trouble with an elderly teller who, on his second visit, asks why he doesn’t get a real job. It then transitions into an emotional deleted scene in which Gilbert, unable to sleep at night,attempts to call his mother and reconnect with her, though is unable to bring himself to reveal that it’s him, instead posing as a radio host telling her she’s the winner of an all-expenses paid vacation.
This, in turn, leads to the next deleted scene in whichGilbert actually has a sit-down meeting with his mother to share the news of Andrea’s pregnancy and ask more about his troubled childhood, only to be generally rebuffed by her as she says the police are looking for him and telling him to stop running. The video then cuts into the movie’s final deleted scene, in which Robert successfully beats a polygraph test from Snydes after his arrest, while also receiving a conjugal visit from Andrea. Check out the full video of deleted and extended scenes below:
In addition to the above deleted and extended scenes, Ungar penned a reflection letter forScreen Rantreflecting on his experience withBandit. The director recalls his and the cast and crew’s feeling that they “had made something special” before admitting that they"didn’t know how many people it would reach and how successful it would become", particularly as it started as a “passion project” for him and writer Kraig Wenman:
When this film came out, we knew we had made something special but didn’t know how many people it would reach and how successful it would ultimately become. Two years later, it’s still being talked about and finding new audiences around the world. For something that started out as a passion project for Kraig Wenman and I, we couldn’t have asked for more.
In looking specifically at the movie’s extra footage, Ungar goes on to describe how it was “hard to navigate an edit and determine which darlings you’re going to kill”, including revealing the team had"over 30 minutes of footage and storylines that didn’t make it into the final cut", feeling that now was the perfect time to share them with the world after two years of messages from fans asking for more:
It’s always hard to navigate an edit and determine which darlings you’re going to kill. In this case, we had over 30 minutes of footage and storylines that didn’t make it into the final cut, which is incredibly uncommon for an indie film of this size. So, after two years of receiving messages online from people asking to see more, I felt there was no better time to release some of the deleted scenes than on the 2-year anniversary of its original run. It can be incredibly disheartening for performers to give something their all only for it to end up on the cutting room floor, so I’m really happy to give them the spotlight they deserve in addition to sharing more of the phenomenal work from Josh Duhamel, Néstor Carbonell, and Elisha Cuthbert.
Ungar concluded his letter by specifically praising the work of Carbonell on the heels of his Emmy win forShogun, recalling how"that guy tore his achilles tendon the first week of filming", only to continue to work for a month on the film, with the director celebrating the star’s dedication in having “pulled off scenes that nobody in their right mind should have done”:
I saw that Néstor Carbonell just won an Emmy, and let me tell you something — that guy tore his achilles tendon the first week of filming and literally should have walked away to get medical attention. Not only did he stay, but he grinded it out with us for a month on a walking boot and pulled off scenes that nobody in their right mind should have done. His doctor would have had a heart attack if he knew what he was doing. A brilliant actor but also a tenacious and incredibly determined human being.
What These Deleted Scenes Say About Bandit
Leaving Storylines Out Was Tough For Ungar, But Didn’t Hurt Its Success
As Ungar notes above,a movie that wasindependently produced likeBanditwill rarely have extra materialdue to the quick nature and smaller budget for production, let alone 30 minutes worth. Considering the movie pulled from the various interviews and eyewitness accounts of the 1996 true-crime bookThe Flying Banditby Robert Knuckle and Ed Arnold, it would prove understandable that Ungar and writer Kraig Wenman would want to chronicle as much of Galvan’s life as they saw was appropriate for the movie.
Mel Gibson Interview: Bandit
Bandit star Mel Gibson discusses exploring the stranger than fiction true story, being impressed with indie productions, Lethal Weapon 5, and more.
That being said, it does seem clear from the fact that the movie was as well-received as it was thatBandit’s extra material being cut from the final release was the right call on Ungar’s part. Still maintaining a 71% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie is the best-reviewed title to have Duhamel in a leading role, while also proving to be one of the best-reviewed movies he’s been a part of, falling a little shy of the LGBTQ+ teen dramaLove, Simonand the two-partBatman: The Long Halloweenanimated movie. See howBanditcompares to Duhamel’s top movies on RT in the chart below:
100%
88%
82%
92%
87%
71%
77%
Romana and Beezus
70%
52%
65%
50%
In addition to its being both one of Duhamel’s best-reviewed movies andUngar’s best,Banditwas also a major hit upon its various digital and streaming releases. The movie spent its first two weeks on Prime Video’s global charts in the No. 1 and 2 spots, and remained in the Top 10 for its entire first month, while also being the No. 1 movie on Paramount Plus Canada. It was also the No. 1 movie on iTunes in its first two weeks, and was the fifth-most watched film on the platform, while also reaching No. 1 on Apple TV+ streaming platform in multiple regions, and is the second-best-performing release ever on Redbox, and was the most-watched original title of 2022.
Our Take On Bandit’s Deleted Scenes
Though Slightly Unnecessary, They Do Nicely Flesh Out Duhamel & Carbonell’s Characters
As far as deleted and extended scenes go,Bandit’s extra footage does actually offer some meaningful extra weight to the movie by better fleshing out Duhamel’s Gilbert and Carbonell’s Snydes. We get to see the former in an even more sympathetic light by getting deeper insight into his heartbreaking past, while also getting to discover just how the latter’s dedication to the job makes him a pesky figure not only for the film’s protagonist, but even for his own coworkers.
