The preferred three-hour cut of director
Kevin Reynolds was drastically edited back to a 135-minute theatrical version by
Kevin Costner and the studio, probably in an effort to recoup the film's inflated $175 million dollar budget (since Costner's previous 3-hour movie
वायट अर्प (1994) had been a box office bomb). ABC later broadcast an extended TV version that restored almost 40 minutes of deleted scenes, which explain more about the world, the people who live there, the Smokers' religious beliefs and their ability to refine crude oil. The additional scenes also tie up several loose ends in the theatrical release. Being a TV special, this version was also censored for violence and language. A fan-edit of the film, called 'Waterworld: The Ulysses Cut' (named after a restored scene at the end), was later made in an attempt to create the most complete version of the movie. It was compiled from several broadcast versions, containing all of the additional footage from the TV version while restoring the previously censored parts. In an unexpected turn, the original distributor officially sanctioned this fan-edit by releasing it in a box-set with the other two versions. This Ulysses Cut was remastered in high-definition though, created with original footage rather than lower-quality broadcast material.
