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STANDEFER: The model cemetery was one of the first things we had to shoot. There were literally a hundred painters and carpenters sculpting and building these hedge stones. Like Adonis with a penis. They were so insane. And at that moment, there was some foreshadowing that this was an incredible and funny and ironic send-up of fashion. And it was so timely. I had these flashes of, I think this is going to be epic and an archetype on some level. DOPPELT: I just remember the show’s producer in my ear—and anybody else’s ears who was involved—saying “One minute to go. One minute to live. 60 seconds.” And these guys just basically took their time. We cut it so damn close to the show going live with Derek Zoolander on the stage. We knew we had to shoot the sequence that happened at the Fashion Awards [at the beginning of the film] at the real Fashion Awards. We didn’t have a choice. We couldn’t recreate it. TAYLOR: Obviously I was married to Ben and I knew Owen, because they were friends. So going into it, I already knew the people I’d be working with a lot. Will, I didn’t know. I had met him a couple of times. And a lot of the supporting cast that Ben filled in and sprinkled in throughout the film are really dear friends of ours—some of them who had acted before, some of them who had never acted before. His parents are both in it, his sister is in it. My brother, who is not an actor, has a part at the end. It felt like this sort of family affair.
Time to pull out your modeling moves and serious faces! Zoolander is no joke (well kind of) when it comes to modeling, and now if your chance to recreate his character with some flashy style and your best model impressions. Since Zoolanders outfits are pretty out there, his character makes for a fun costume on cosplay nights! GALLEN: The show itself was not live. It was a taped show. So if a commercial break ran a little bit longer, it wasn’t going to kill anybody. DAVID C. ROBINSON (COSTUME DESIGNER): I started five weeks out because I was the second designer. They had fired the first designer, and so I had five weeks, and that included getting a crew and finding a space, because there was no space. So that was a little scary. (Laughs) The person that actually helps set the plot of the film in motion is David Duchovny. Duchovny, completely unrecognizable as hand model J.P. Prewitt, summons Derek and Matilda to a graveyard made up of former models turned assassins, where he reveals Mugatu’s plan to brainwash Derek into killing the Malaysian prime minister.
Owen’s line “Listen to your friend Billy Zane. He’s a cool dude”—I don’t remember being scripted at all. That was just Owen in his mad genius just creating this funny meme in the making. I just thought it was humorous on the day. I had no idea that it was going to evolve into something that people quote more than any other line from my other films. STANDEFER: I thought it was this super cool but weird, off-color movie that we did with Ben. It felt almost private somehow, like an inside joke. And then, I was at a dinner, and someone made a Blue Steel face. STILLER: We had these meetings, John, me and Stuart Cornfeld. Stuart was my producing partner at the time, who passed away last year. Stuart was a really amazing producer, and was a great writer, too. And we were throwing around ideas and talking about the script we had written that John was going to rewrite. ROBIN STANDEFER (PRODUCTION DESIGNER): Ben was working with a production designer and they didn’t really gel. So [art director] Stephen Alesch and I got this sort of clandestine call. And I went and met Ben one night in his office. We just talked about the narrative, the script, and the whole concept of the film. And Stephen and I agreed to take it over. We brought in a whole new crew. A normal prep is maybe three to four months. They were about to start in a month, so we had to really rethink a lot of significant sets. We just worked 24/7.
No Zoolander costume is complete without the iconic red pants. These animal-printed red pants are the epitome of bold fashion choices. They are designed to make a statement and turn heads wherever you go. Get ready to strut your stuff and leave a lasting impression on everyone at the party. Signature Zoolander Wig HAMBURG: At one point, Ben wanted to star in it and write it and produce it, but didn’t initially want to direct it. LEVINSON: Will had to schedule around his SNL schedule. And that was his real hair! I gotta tell you, I’m sure SNL and Lorne [Michaels] weren’t thrilled that he dyed his hair and let it grow to that length. But he did it for the movie, which is amazing.BARRY PETERSON (CINEMATOGRAPHER): It was my first studio movie. I think Ben’s directive was We want a young director who is shooting commercials and hip-looking stuff. I was shooting Super Bowl commercials and shooting cool fashion at that stage. So it felt like the perfect fit.
PETERSON: “We’re doing a movie. Ben Stiller is Derek Zoolander doing this thing. We just want to ask you a couple questions. Talk about how incredible he is, how he’s really good looking.” They fed them a bit, and because they’re all great actors, everyone nailed it. Complete your Zoolander look with our selection of accessories. From Derek's signature hairstyle wig to Mugatu's eccentric eyewear, we have all the details covered. Add a touch of humor with our Zoolander-inspired props, such as the infamous "really, really ridiculously good-looking" mug or the "Zoolander for President" sash. LEVINSON: We knew certain celebrities were showing up at the awards. So we reached out to some of them in advance, and some people we were just pulling [others] aside and saying, “Would you mind doing this?” FABIO: It was a lot of fun. He directed me to improvise. “Just say whatever.” In one of the scenes, I kind of made fun of Donatella [Versace], but they didn’t use it.If you're more of a Mugatu fan, we've got you covered too. Transform into the eccentric fashion designer with our Mugatu costumes. With his outrageous outfits and quirky personality, Mugatu is a Halloween costume that will definitely turn heads. Choose from his flamboyant leopard print suit or his iconic "M" sweater – just make sure to perfect your evil laugh and practice your villainous monologues. Do you want to change the world? Not just with stuff like charity and schools that teach kids how to read good, but actually change it in useful ways, like through fashion? Then this official Mugatu Costume from the cult comedy movie Zoolander is the fashionable ensemble of your dreams! STILLER: I was just surprised that the movie was even released in Malaysia. I was like, Wow. We even got there. Like, they were actually even needing to ban us because they released it.
GALLEN: Ben Stiller was still sort of a rising comedic star. He took to it really well, and said he would do it. But I remember getting on the phone with Ben a few days before the show, and he was having second thoughts. He was concerned maybe it wasn’t funny enough. I told him, “Look, this [Fashion Awards broadcast] is not going out for another few days. Let me put it on the big screens tonight and let’s see what kind of reaction we get. If it doesn’t get a great reaction, only a couple thousand people will see it. That’s it. It won’t air.” And he liked that. That way he’s sort of protected. “If it doesn’t work, then it won’t air. If it works, it airs.” And it killed. (Laughs.) It was sort of an Island of Dr. Morreau story where Mugatu was involved in breeding models and kind of doing experiments on them. So there was like a half man, half donkey, half model character. And then it came around to the idea of doing much more of a Manchurian Candidate-style movie. STILLER: Derelicte was always a pretty out-there idea. But to me, in retrospect, it now seems kind of tame in terms of what actually has been done. And, you know, that was us trying to figure out, All right, what’s going to keep this in some sort of world that’s sort of believable but it’s ridiculous? STILLER: We did take the World Trade Center out of the skyline, which I really regretted and made sure it was in for the DVD release. That was the one thing that I really felt bad about. But it was also a decision I made at that moment in time because I felt that was the right thing to do. And in retrospect, I feel like it wasn’t the right thing to do. So I changed it. PETERSON: We grabbed a Steadicam and pulled Ben up onto the stage. It was totally stressful. You had to get it and get out of the way so they could continue the show.
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ROBINSON: I recall that the people in the fashion world wanted nothing to do with us. The VH1 short was apparently not well liked in the fashion world. We went to designers to try to get clothes and they were not interested at all in working with us. I worked with all of the guys and girls [in the industry], and I remember most of them taking themselves so seriously. It’s like, ‘Come on! You’re just a mannequin.’” STILLER: There was that question that came up during the press junkets and going and doing interviews of, “Was it in good taste to release the movie this soon after 9/11?” And at that time—and I still do feel—that it was important to let people have an opportunity to go out and escape for a couple of hours from the events that were happening and have a chance to laugh if they wanted to.
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