[Spoilers for the end of Power Rangers are discussed in the article below.

The new Power Rangers movie is now out in the world, and wouldn’t you know it, it’s pretty good! Director Dean Israelite crafted something like a mix between Chronicle and The Breakfast Club—a film that takes the superpowers and characters seriously, but also hones in on fleshing the characters out as believable, flawed, and diverse teenagers. The film introduces the new Power Rangers team to the world as the characters learn what it means to become worthy of the Ranger moniker, and bolstered by above-expectations box office on opening weekend, the possibility for a sequel is certainly there.

Which brings us to that Power Rangers after-credits scene. If you stuck around for the credits at the end of the movie, you were treated to an extra scene that teased a new addition to the Power Rangers ensemble if we do indeed get a Power Rangers 2.

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Image via Lionsgate

We’re back in the alternative high school as the detention teacher is taking roll, and he calls off the name Tommy Oliver to no answer. It’s a bit of a nod to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off as he keeps saying the name over and over again with no response, but fans of the Power Rangers franchise know exactly what this means: The Green Ranger is coming.

Indeed, the character of Tommy Oliver made his first appearance in the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers TV series in 1993. Played by Jason David Frank, Tommy is a new student at Angel Grove High School who immediately butts heads with Jason and becomes entranced by Rita Repulsa. Tommy serves as an antagonist for a bit, tasked with destroying Zordon and the Power Rangers, but once the spell is broken he becomes a regular part of the Power Rangers team as the Green Ranger.

So what does the Power Rangers after-credits scene mean? It means that in all likelihood, if Power Rangers 2 does happen, Tommy Oliver/The Green Ranger will be introduced. And he’d certainly make for an interesting antagonist, as the best part of Israelite’s Power Rangers was the interpersonal relationships between the teenagers.

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Image via Lionsgate

In speaking with EW, Israelite actually revealed some insight into how the after-credits scene came about, noting that they originally shot a different version:

“[The original version] took place in the cafeteria and it just wasn’t as cool or dynamic, but it was basically the same thing. This felt much more organic to what was going on at the end of the movie. It was a part of that end scene in detention with all the other kids, so we just added it on to that. We shot it in four hours.” 

Israelite also touched on the scene’s intention:

“We thought about the fact that the movie is an updated version of the show, which was teenagers with attitude, so [the tease is saying] if you think these teenagers have attitude, wait ’til you see Tommy. He brings it in bucketloads. That’s what this scene is trying to hint at.”

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Image via Lionsgate

But while Tommy in the series was, obviously, male, the new Power Rangers cast has a different idea for the Green Ranger character: make it a girl. Here’s what Red Ranger Dacre Montgomery had to say:

“A lot of the cast and I have discussed that we think it should be a girl. It makes it even three girls, three boys…[The scene teasing Oliver is] left blank. It’s a cliffhanger. Whoever you’re going to drop into that position — whether it’s a girl, it’s inevitably going to create drama. It’ll be interesting to drop that drama into it and see how we all relate to it and work with it.”

That would certainly be a fun change of pace for the film franchise and would shake up the dynamic quite a bit. Lionsgate has yet to formally announce a Power Rangers sequel, but if and when they do, you can be sure the Green Ranger will be part of it.

What do you think folks? Do you want to see Tommy Oliver in the next film? Should they gender-swap the role of the Green Ranger? Sound off in the comments below.

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Image via Lionsgate
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Image via Lionsgate

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