Seth Green's Evil Principles

After making his third scene-stealing appearance as Dr. Evil's sarcastic spawn, Seth Green wants to make it clear that he wasn't just in Austin Powers in Goldmember for the green stuff, baby. And since he made this claim prior to the film's record-breaking $71.5 million opening weekend, we're inclined to believe him.

"My concern [about Goldmember] was not to make a movie for the sole purpose of making money," he explains, "not wringing out the proverbial talent 'til it's dry." Luckily, after reading the script, Green realized Mike Myers had no intention of phoning in the funny. "The second I read it, I was put completely at ease."

Still, Green predicts Goldmember will mark the final adventures of the international man of mystery. "This movie is more of an ending; it's a good summation," he reveals. But, he adds, "If the script was great, if it made sense to do, I would never turn down the opportunity to work with this group of people again — in any setting."

Should Green ever refuse a fourth Austin Powers on the grounds of creative integrity, it wouldn't be the first time he made an early exit from a successful franchise. The actor quit Buffy the Vampire Slayer and his role as Alyson Hannigan's werewolf beau in 1999 because his alter ego was getting slayed on the backburner.

"When you're a regular character on a 22-episode season, the writers often struggle to put you into an episode where you don't necessarily belong," says the 27-year-old actor, who was also juggling a fledgling film career at the time. "I wound up working five days a week, 12-14 hours a day, to be in a scene with nine other people and say, 'I think Buffy's right.' That was creatively frustrating for me and the writers."