John Landis
John Landis
John David Landisis an American film director, screenwriter, actor, and producer. He is known for his comedy films, his horror films, and his music videos with Michael Jackson. He directed National Lampoon's Animal House, An American Werewolf in London, Trading Places, Michael Jackson's music video Thriller, The Blues Brothers, and Beverly Hills Cop III...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActor
Date of Birth3 August 1950
CountryUnited States of America
directors actors typecasting
Directors, like actors, get typecast.
stars appreciate actors
I am very direct and I tend to treat everyone exactly the same, which sometimes gets me in trouble because some movie stars feel like they should be treated differently. But, when you're dealing with good actors, they really appreciate it.
actors directors different
Truthfully, most directors don't direct actors. Every actor is different, so when you're asked, "How do you approach an actor?," it depends on the actor. With some, you do nothing. With some, you're very specific.
tv-shows actors tvs
Directors, like actors, get typecast. And because I've had great success with comedy and horror and TV shows, that's basically what I'm kind of offered.
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I've been in Kyoto and Munich and Tel Aviv and Buenos Aires, and you see people dressed as Jake and Elwood, ... That's amazing they're like Mickey Mouse. They've just become part of the culture.
later peter test true
Who knew? Peter Bogdanovich said that the only true test of anything is time. Well, it's 25 years later and here we are.
business convince issue kinds lack material money projects tons
Material comes all kinds of ways, and it's never a question of a lack of material or a lack of projects - I have tons of projects. The issue is to convince someone to give you the money. And it's a very different business than it was just 8 years ago.
films movies taken versions
There have been 14 versions that I can find of Burke & Hare movies. They have all been horror films and all the movies have taken place in Victorian times, which doesn't make any sense.
business great
It's strange how extras have become such a big part of the business. I don't know what I think of it. I mean, some of them are great, most of them are filler.
acts celebrity danny focus general inspired intentions interest john proud
That I am proud of, ... When we made this movie in 1979, rhythm-and-blues acts in general were passe. What John and Danny did was use their celebrity (status) to focus on the big acts that inspired them. One of our intentions was to propagate interest in the music.
based chinatown economic half major model movies plot studio watched
It's a whole new economic model . . . It's corporate, it's based on fear. They try to do what they think is safe. I would say half the movies I've made I could not make now with a major studio. They would not let me . . . I watched Chinatown the other day. What studio do you think would make that movie now with that plot and that ending?
seeing wacky
We were just seeing how wacky you can be.
animal apocalypse blues budgets calling came celebrated criticized critics exception films five house million motion movies originally star time trek
There were five films in that time that had budgets of over $25 million that were criticized before they even came out, ... Apocalypse Now, Heaven's Gate, Star Trek - The Motion Picture, 1941 and The Blues Brothers. They started calling us '1942.' But the interesting thing is that, with the exception of one (Heaven's Gate), all of those movies were very successful. When Animal House celebrated its 25th anniversary, many of the same critics who (dumped) on it originally were now calling it a classic.
together
And that's when they put together that extraordinary band.