WGTC: So you just said Tarantino – does that bring violence into the mix?
Nicholas Stoller: It’s a really violent movie. Violent, but fun! I want it to be fun. I want it to be like the way when you watch a Tarantino movie – and this is a strange reference, and I think Luhrmann is similar – but you’re at a fun, crazy party. There’s also a revenge element to it to, which is why I mentioned Tarantino.
I don’t think we’ll go as gory – I don’t want people throwing up or anything. There’s an element to it that I really love and it’s that all the characters in the movie have horror PTSD from WWII, because they’ve all murdered so many people – every character. Good guys. Bad guys. Every single one of them. You’re constantly seeing these brutal flashbacks to WWII, which to me is very funny. That’s the tone of the movie.
WGTC: So an action comedy?
Nicholas Stoller: An action comedy with a bit of L.A. Confidential too, that kind of plot. I’ll say this, it’ll be unlike any movie anyone has every seen – for good or bad [Laughs]. It’ll be so many different things in one movie.
WGTC: You’ve stuck mainly to comedies throughout your career – are there any plans to ever branch out into other genres?
Nicholas Stoller: I’m always going to do something with some kind of comedy. I love comedy, it’s how I see the world – it’s the genre I respond to most. I don’t think I’ll ever do a straight drama or straight action movie, but again, Black And White is an action comedy with some musical elements in it too. [Laughs] I take it project by project, I don’t really have a grand plan in terms of directions I’d like to go.
WGTC: I ask this question during all my interviews, so I’m excited to hear your answer. If you could remake any film, classic or favorite, and put your own twist on it – what would your dream remake be?
Nicholas Stoller: I have a theory that you should only remake movies that aren’t good – well, good premises that aren’t great. There’s no reason to remake a great movie. Or, OK, also you can remake movies that today would be insane with new technology. The movie that popped in my head is a movie I loved as a kid called Explorers. The first half of the movie is amazing, it’s every kid’s fantasy – kids build a spaceship and fly into space. That’s it. In the second half they meet aliens, but the aliens are kind of lame and the film doesn’t end well – but it’s a great premise. When you said that, Explorers immediately popped into my head.
WGTC: Circling back to Neighbors, were there any great anecdotes from filming with so many hilarious comedians and great improvisational actors?
Nicholas Stoller: I’m trying to think. The shoot was very smooth, so we didn’t really create a lot of stories, but initially we had a ton of dick in the movie. Like, way too much. Christopher Mintz-Plasse, his dick was out all the time, and there’s a funny thing that happens when someone has a fake dick that looks very real – everyone wants to touch it. He was constantly touching it, then other dudes were constantly touching it, and ladies were touching it. He was clearly becoming a weird sexual magnet with his fake penis, but it looked super real so people were always hitting his very real looking penis around. It was a really fun, pleasant shoot where everyone laughed a lot.
WGTC: Finally, how did you cast the frat? How did you bring all those talents together?
Nicholas Stoller: I wanted the frat to be people you’d hang out with, like the Deltas in Animal House, a bunch of nice guys who just really want to party – none of them seem douchy, they’re all kind of funny. We obviously knew Dave Franco and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, so they didn’t have to audition, but we were trying to find who the last guy could be, and Jerrod Carmichael absolutely killed it. Besides being hysterical, he puts out a really nice vibe. He’s a really nice guy. I saw him and knew he was our guy, he was perfect. He rounded it out really well.
I’d like to thank Nicholas Stoller for this exclusive interview. Be sure to party hearty when Neighbors opens on May 9th!