'Zoolander 2' Has "Momentum" at Paramount

The sequel to Zoolander is moving forward. It's no surprise that Paramount wants the sequel after all these years; all the comedy has done in the past decade is grow in recognition, and Ben Stiller has never denied he'd do it. How could he; he makes sequels for just about everything. The new plan is to lean on Stiller's Tropic Thunder co-writer, Justin Theroux, to direct and work with the star on the script for Zoo2 - that's the name I just gave it - and he's even going to Paris Fashion Week to do what we'll consider research. How about that guy? He gets to write off a trip to Fashion Week in Paris. A source tells Deadline Hollywood that the project "has momentum," but I have to say, I expected more out of the casting than these early indications. Sure, Owen Wilson will probably be back (with an unjustifiable $15 million for his supporting turn in Stiller's Little Fockers, why wouldn't he?), and Jonah Hill is negotiating to be the villain. I don't have anything against Jonah Hill, but...really? People have been waiting for this sequel for almost ten years, and that's the best you can do? Throw money at Denzel Washington or something. One reason for the rather modest bad guy reveal is that Paramount reportedly wants to keep this budgeted under $50 million. For Stiller, that part's easy: Get paid on the back end. Of course, the first film wasn't tremendously successful in theaters, so if Ben's concerned about a repeat performance, he might prefer everything up front. I don't think this will have any trouble making at least $50 million, but then again - The Heartbreak Kid. Stiller and Theroux did a great job with Tropic Thunder, but what were the expectations? This one has built-in buttons it has to hit, so we'll see if they can pull it off.

Comments

[Vince]

I'm a total hater, and I know considering my taste in comedies this should theoretically be one of my favorites, but that pic of Stiller is honestly funnier than the entirety of Zoolander .

So no, I'm not interested in a sequel.