Todd Phillips was showered with critical acclaim last summer when he delivered The Hangover, which was one of the biggest and best movies of the 2009.
This week sees him return to the director’s chair, reuniting with Zach Galifianakis, with his new movie Due Date, his first project since the success of The Hangover.
The Brooklyn born filmmaker attended New York University Film School but he dropped out in order to concentrate on his first film.
That first movie was a documentary Hated: GG Allin and the Murder Junkies, which was about the life of punk rock musician GG Allin.
And he stuck with the documentary as he followed this up with his second movie Frat House, which looked at college fraternities.
Phillip directed and produced the movie and it went on to win the Grand Jury Prize at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival.
In 2000 he turned has hand to comedy as he wrote and directed Road Trip, which starred Breckin Mayer, Seann William Scott and Tom Green.
The movie was met with favourable reviews and it went on to gross in excess of $119 million at the global box office.
He went back to his documentary roots with Bittersweet Motel, which centred on band Phish, before returning to comedy with Old School.
The movie brought together a great comic cast of Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell and Vince Vaughn as a trio of thirty somethings who wanted to re-live their college days - and they do so by starting a fraternity.
Since then he has gone on to work on Starsky & Hutch and School For Scoundrels but it is The Hangover that is his biggest success.
2009’s blockbuster summer was a little disappointing after being treated to The Dark Knight and Iron Man the year before so it was to be a comedy that would grab all the headlines.
A Las Vegas-set comedy centred around three groomsmen who lose their about-to-be-wed buddy during their drunken misadventures, then must retrace their steps in order to find him.
It was the sleeper hit of the year as the movie went on to gross in excess of $467 million, not bad for a film that was made on a budget of $35 million.
But it’s Due Date that is the filmmaker’s currently project as he brings together a cast of Galifianakis, Robert Downey Jr, Jamie Foxx and Michelle Monaghan.
Peter Highman (Robert Downey Jr.) is an expectant first-time father whose wife's due date is a mere five days away.
As Peter hurries to catch a flight home from Atlanta to be at her side for the birth his plans are thwarted by a snow storm that grounds all flights.
His best intentions of trying to make it home go completely awry when a chance encounter with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis) forces Peter to hitch a ride with Ethan
As Peter desperately tries to get home, he must deal with Ethan's laid-back attitude, numerous delays
and several mishaps in this road trip comedy.
And Phillips is already working on his new project - and that is the highly anticipated The Hangover 2. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha and Galifanakis all return and the movie will be set in LA and Thailand.
Due Date is out now
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw
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