Power Rangers Fan Movie Producer Responds to YouTube/Vimeo Pull

The Adi Shankar-produced, Joseph Kahn-directed, darkly reimagined Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fan film has been pulled from both YouTube and Vimeo.

After garnering a tremendous amount of attention upon its release, the hard-R version of the Rangers starring James Van der Beek and Katie Sackhoff was heavily criticized by Power Rangers creator Haim Saban and original Green Ranger Jason David Frank. Ultimately, SCG Power Rangers LLC, the company that owns the rights to the property demanded that the video be pulled.

Previously, TMZ reported that "Shankar ... whose previous work includes The Grey, Lone Survivor and Dredd -- isn't backing down. It's still posted on YouTube and Shankar's rep, Ash Venkatram says he'll keep it there until he gets a cease and desist."

Under threat of legal action, both YouTube and Vimeo pulled the film. It can be found on Shankar's Facebook page, however.  Shankar has previously produced bootlegs of The Punisher (starring Thomas Jane) and Venom (starring Ryan Kwanten).
Shankar has released a statement, which you can see below.

To Whom It May Concern:
Today, I was deeply disappointed to learn that Saban Brands decided to attack my Power/Rangers “Bootleg Universe One-Shot” film.  To all the viewers that enjoyed this film, I consider this an outright infringement on freedom of expression and individualism. I set out to make this film because I am a childhood fan of the Power Rangers. As children our retinas are burned with iconic images and as we grow older these images come to represent crucial moments within the trajectories of our own lives.  This film is a homage to the original creators of the Power Rangers, and a parody of a television series we all grew up loving. Films like my Power/Rangers “Bootleg” are vital expressions of creativity in our troubled world. If we suppress this creativity and become passive participants in the consumption of the culture we live in, we implicitly allow a dangerous precedent to be set for the future of the internet.
Warm Regards,
Adi Shankar

P.S. Thank you Mark Zuckerberg for hosting Power/Rangers and taking a stand https://www.facebook.com/theadishankarbrand

Here Is a Great Fan Film Called Power/Rangers by: Adi Shankar ENJOY!