BY PHILLIP NAKOV | Phillip recently visited the set of "Starsky and Hutch", and had an opportunity to talk with director Todd Phillips and Vince Vaughn.

Did you guys go through various different concepts of how this would be before you decided just, seventies, play it straight?

Yeah, we were playing with it for a while. We started out – yeah we did, we went through a lot of concepts, actually.

So, what was the evolution?

The evolution was, what plays best for a comedy? We’re making a comedy with action, as opposed to straight “action comedy” or “action movie”. So, I think it was really, what’s gonna go best with the comedy of it. I mean, the casting obviously lends itself to being a comedy. So, we thought, well, if we play it in the 70s and play it straight, I always feel like, the more real you play it, it’s kind of, you have more to play against.

Charlie’s Angel sets it now, I Spy did it. Then you have stuff like the Brady Bunch, which sets it now, but… Did you go through those ideas?

Well, no, I mean, I’ve seen all those movies, but it wasn’t that we thought, “Oh let’s not do that because Charlie’s Angels did that.” This movie is a world of difference than Charlie’s Angels, except that they both happen to be shows from the 70s. Umm, and I liked Charlie’s Angels a lot, but we don’t have Cameron Diaz in panties, or anything like that. So, we have to sell something else, which hopefully is comedy, you know.

Is this a parody?

It’s not a parody. You, know, it’s an interesting tone the movie has, because it’s not really a spoof or a parody. It’s really just saying, this is the prequel to the series Starsky & Hutch. This movie takes place before the series was shot, ostensibly, in your mind.

Do you explain that? I mean, how do we know that?

Well, because it’s an origin story. Starsky and Hutch meet in this movie.

We’ve already heard that the ( ) character was made larger because of the improv and stuff that have been going on. Who was the evil guy before then?

Well, I’d made Old School with Vince, so I went to Vince first and said, “will you play the villain in this movie?” and he said, “yeah.” Based on that, we wrote his part a little bit bigger, but it was never anybody else that was gonna play it. Cause Vince said yes.

And how much improvising is there?

Well I mean, in Old School – I did Road Trip, then Old School and this. In all the movies – in all comedies, probably – we just kind of let it go a little bit. I mean, if you see us shoot, we kind of – today is a tricky thing to see because it’s a little bit technical, so it’s a little bit slower going, and it’s not so much comedy here that we’re shooting today, but generally we’ll do a take and we’ll say, “we got it, what’s in the script. Ok, let’s do a free one.” You know, which is basically improving.

Can you give us a little setup as to what the plot is? Is this some kind of Cocaine theft?

Yeah, it’s basically, you know, if you look at those 70s movies, something that I’ve always liked is that there’s always a singular villain. It’s not like it’s some crime syndicate with computer disks and a hacker with a thing talking to them on a walkie. You know, it’s very much like they were in the 70s, with a really singular villain. And Vince is basically a guy who’s doing a big coke deal, and Starsky and Hutch kind of stumble onto the biggest case of their lives, you know?

How are you adapting to being an action director?

Yeah, again, it’s not huge stuff. And again, you surround yourself with good people, so it’s not so much adapting.

You’ve got the car chase stuff.

Yeah, there’s car chase stuff, but, you know, as a director your job is to really just set the tone of the movie. I always think that you’re the purveyor of tone. It doesn’t matter if you’re doing action or romance or whatever. Once you set the tone and once you and the actors have that tone figured out, it doesn’t matter if you happen to be shooting a car running by or a guy talking to a guy, you know. It’s not any harder, except it’s a little more time consuming. You know what I mean?

How hard was it finding that tone?

Umm...

Was that something that was discussed a lot?

Yeah, it was, because it’s a tricky tone. A lot of times you can just fall into becoming a spoof and that’s sometimes the easier way out. So, it was very much about trying to avoid that and going for laughs in a different way, which is basically the character comedy with Ben and Owen.

How did you decide on them for their roles?

I mean, it was just, that’s the only choice, to me. I mean, either that or you do it with Paul Michael Glazer and David Soul and you do a real one, right? But, I mean, if you’re going to update it and make it now, and you want to make it funny, Ben and Owen seem to be a great team and a logical choice.

Are Ben and Owen critical of each other? Do they coach each other?

Yeah, they’re great friends, and, you know, we’re all critical of each other. On a movie, I think probably any movie, it probably works like that. Probably on a good set where people are getting along. They’re (Ben and Owen) great friends. Vince is a good friend. So everybody is just kind of critical of each other, in a good way.

Do they ever direct each other?

I don’t know about directing each other, but it’s definitely, if somebody were having trouble with a line and it doesn’t sound right, if it’s Ben’s line, Owen might suggest something, sure.

Was it different working with guys who are already kind of a team going in, as opposed to a series of different comedians, or...

No, it’s the same. It really feels the same. Yeah.

One of the famous visuals of the series is the car. Are you having any special introduction to the car?

Yeah, actually. We’re shooting that this weekend, on Saturday, I think. When Owen sees the car for the first time. It’s Ben’s car and, you know, it’s not necessarily a special introduction, but it’s definitely its own thing.

How many shooting days do you have?

55 shooting days.

And where are you so far?

We’re on like 45.

Are you building up a good gag reel on this?

It seems like it, actually. Yeah.

What’s something funny behind the scenes that’s happened while you were shooting?

I don’t know, umm, people always say, “oh, give me a funny anecdote from the set.” I don’t know. I never can think of one. Gag reels and something funny from the set. I don’t know.

The show had them both kind of on equal footing, it looks like, in the comedy, they’re very different. One’s much more straight-laced; one is not. Can you talk a little about that?

Well, I think that the essence of comedy is conflict, right? So, we wanted to set up some kind of – by the end of the movie, they get into the rhythm of the show, which is, they’re good partners. But, in the beginning, it was much more of “wait a minute. We’re coming from different places.” But then they learn to work together and, basically, by each taking a step towards each other. It’s almost like a romantic comedy between two men. You know?

Ben is the much more straight-laced, supercop. And Owen has his own style and his own way of doing it, which is a little bit more subdued and, he thinks, a little bit more effective. And so those styles clash, but by the end they kind of become a great team.

So, besides being TV-inspired, what do you think sets this apart from other buddy cop movies?

To me, movies are all about casting. So, I think the casting in this movie is just so dead-on for right now. Between Ben-Owen, of course, and Vince, Juliette Lewis, and Snoop Dogg. Will Ferrell does a cameo, which is great. We have just some great stuff in the movie. Not that other cop movies aren’t cast well. I just think that this movie’s pretty exciting to cast, to me.

How much of this is done on location, and how much in studio?

90% of it was done on location. But this is basically a studio, right? We come in here and make it look like we want. So, but 90% of it is finding a room like this and then shooting.

You said this is a very technical scene. Can you talk about some of the technical challenges?

It’s not so much technical. I meant more like, it’s not really a funny scene. It’s basically, Vince takes Hutch hostage right here on stage at the thing. And Ben has to decide if he’s gonna shoot his partner or not. Of course, he does. That’ll actually be funny. If you stick around today, you’ll see that.

And then Fred gets shot, right?

And then Fred Williamson takes a bullet.

He said that you almost broke one of his rules, of not getting killed in a movie.

(laughs) Right. Exactly.

Can you talk a little bit about the casting of Snoop Dogg in the Huggy Bear role?

To me, when I was growing up watching Starsky and Hutch, Huggy Bear was the coolest guy on TV. So I was just thinking “who’s the coolest guy, right now?” You know, a lot of African-American actors wanted to play that part, because they grew up also thinking this is the coolest guy on TV. But I thought, out of respect, we had to go to Snoop first.

This is the 2nd time you’ve worked with Snoop, right?

Yeah. I bring back a lot of the same people. Juliette Lewis and Will and Vince and Snoop. I like to...(inaudible – Todd turns his head to see Vince).

(Todd sees Vince arrive)

Whoa. I feel like we’re at a Dead show.

We were watching on the monitors – that scene missing when they find the cocaine – Is the second unit going to do that?

No. That’s what we’re filming right now. So on the monitors I was playing back the scene we already cut and now the Scene Missing is what we’re shooting right now, because you kind of edit it as you go along.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Vince Vaughn.

Being a villain, albeit a comedic villain, how do you like that?

Vince: Love it, thank you.

Todd: Next.

From here on out, all responses, unless otherwise noted, are Vince Vaughn’s.

It’s kind of a big day for you. Do you have a lot of lines today?

Not a lot of lines today, but a lot of lines for me, in general, today. You know what I mean?

How are you liking the outfit you’re wearing?

I love the outfit. Makes me feel pretty for the first time in a long time.

(reporters laugh)

Todd: Why is that funny?

How did you decide on the facial hair?

That was Todd’s idea, to wear the facial hair, to go with it. And I liked it. I’ve had a whole group of men hit on me that I’ve never had before.
Todd: It’s opened up a whole new...

It’s opened up a whole new way to look at the world.

Ever been confused for a cop?

That hasn’t happened yet, but we can play house later.

What are your memories of Starsky & Hutch?

I just remember thinking that it was badass. I don’t remember the stories and stuff, cause I was five when this thing came out. I remember on the playground, we were always like, “Let’s play Starsky and Hutch.” And what happened after that is unclear, but I know that we thought that that was cool, because they were like cool detectives busting bad guys.

So was it from the moment that you came on that the part became bigger? Or was it something that was talked about after you came on?

No, I think that either the part was what it was when we had a read-through of it, and Todd, as always, after hearing it out loud, sort of just made the whole script tighter and better. It was almost like an editing process, I think. As we’ve gone through it the movie’s been somewhat similar to Old School in that we’re always looking for the best way to service the scene.

What would you think if people compared this villain to Norman Bates?

I would think that they probably had a lot of time on their hands.

How would you say it is working with this director?

Todd: Whoa. Want me to leave? I’ll leave.

No. Phillips is the best. I worked with him on Old School. I think you can see it in his movies that, especially for actors – I just think I speak for myself, I think Will feels the same way and everyone else – it’s fun when you have a guy you really genuinely find funny, understands what you do that’s funny, encourages that and allows you to do that, and then is good at bringing the whole movie together and making a story out of it.

And what about working with Owen and Ben?

Owen and Ben?

Is there a lot of improv between the three of you?

A little bit, yeah. They’re both great – we should have some questions for both of us.

Todd: No, no. I’ve already done my questions, honestly.

Are you sure?

Todd: Yeah.

Owen and Ben are great. I think they’re both very funny and both very talented, and I like their approach to filmmaking.

Do you guys spur each other on a little bit? Do you push each other to go a little further?

Not really. I enjoy their work and I have fun when I make movies with them, because I’m inspired by what they’re doing. It’s easier to get into a scene, obviously, when you’re working with someone who’s specific and knows what they’re doing. So, it’s fun to, you know, play basketball or tennis or any kind of thing with someone who likes to play and you can have fun with.

Did you do any ass-wrangling on the set?

Oh no. The ass-wrangling? No, I left that at the MTV show. I turned a page.

For both of you: How has your relationship grown since Old School?

I feel very lucky, because I sort of started in comedy, and then really, didn’t really see a lot of comedies that I found funny. And when Todd first came to me with Old School, after sitting with him and talking to him, I really responded to his storytelling sensibilities and his approach to comedy. For me, before I did Old School, a lot of people were like, “Yeah, Vince. I don’t know if he’s funny,” if they didn’t see Swingers or anything. So Todd gave me a great opportunity in the comedy world when a lot of people wouldn’t. Just doing that has opened up a lot of doors for me.

Todd: It’s weird with Vince and I. I always get the feeling that Vince likes me more than I like him. (laughter) It puts me in an awkward position. No. I am the biggest Vince Vaughn fan on the planet. I’ve said it before: we wrote Old School for Vince. He was the only guy we really wrote the movie for. I said it before that, if I could work with him on every movie – I’m not just saying that, I said this to you – I’ll be happy. And I probably will, because that’s just my goal. I think Vince is one of, right now, one of the funniest guys going. Before Old School, a lot of people didn’t see it. Hopefully, people are going to see it more and he’s going to be doing more comedies, because there’s just such a sharpness to him. I respect Vince tremendously and I love working with him and I hope we always will do stuff.

How does it benefit you to work with somebody more than once?

It only really benefits, I think, if you like the person you’re working with, you know what I mean? Otherwise, it’s like a bad relationship that should’ve ended a long time ago. But really, I know that Will would say the same thing, like so many times, especially doing comedic stuff or other stuff, when you work with someone who’s not funny, but they have a real idea of what they think is funny, it’s like trying to fit a triangle into a circle. With Todd, he had real good ideas of what was funny, but was also open to us bringing stuff to it and kind of making us better, by saying, “that’s funny, but let’s go this way.” We got that feeling while shooting Old School, but after seeing the movie there was even more trust, because you go, “Wow. This guy really brought this movie together in a way that was fun, funny and has a nice story to it.”

(Vanessa asks a question about seventies fashion that I couldn’t make out)

I think that all of it’s going to come back. All fashion is like a pendulum – it’s goes so far one way and so far the other way. Thank you guys for your time. I give you Todd Phillips.