It was in my ten-year plan to work with the greatest comedic actors around 
Former documentary filmmaker Todd Phillips is one of Hollywood's hottest directors thanks to comedy hits like Road Trip and Old School. Now he joins forces with Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, plus a trio of Old School pals - Vince Vaughn, Will Ferrell and Juliette Lewis - for Starsky & Hutch, a big-screen version of the 70s cop show.
Were you a fan of the original series?
I was less a fan of the original series and more a fan of Ben and Owen. It wasn't like I grew up going "This is the greatest thing in the world - one day I want to make this into a movie!" It was never in my ten-year plan to turn TV shows into movies. However, it was in my ten-year plan to work with the greatest comedic actors around, and Ben and Owen are certainly up there.
Were you worried the film might be too much of a spoof?
Finding the right tone was very difficult. It's not a spoof or a parody, but it's not all that serious either. To me it's always been more of a homage to the show, a love letter. We're poking fun at certain elements, but I wouldn't say it's a straight-out spoof. When people say that, I think it's a simple way of looking at it that's rather dismissive of the movie.
Ben and Owen have made a few films together. Were you worried about interfering with their established comic partnership?
Not really - it wasn't like I showed up on the first day of the shoot and met them. Owen hung out the set of Old School because his brother Luke was in it, and I had met and talked with Ben before. So I think I got into that partnership quickly and it became more of a... troika!
David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser have cameos in the film. What were they like to work with?
Now that was intimidating! But it was exciting too - it was fun to see those guys back in the outfits. It was also emotional for them - they hadn't been together standing next to that car in 25 years. It was really fun to watch them getting back into it.
No room for Antonio Fargas though...
I had to draw the line - we barely got by with the cuteness of bringing back the two original guys, so I didn't want to flood it with that. No disrespect to Antonio, it was just we could only get away with so much!
What are you doing next?
I'm not sure, but something I hope to do in the future is a remake of the British comedy School For Scoundrels, set in the present day. This is something we've been working on for three years; it was quite complicated getting the rights.
Starsky & Hutch is released in London's West End on Friday 12th March 2004, and nationwide on 19th March.
