FILM · 2016 · USA
Zoolander 2
25 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (25)
- #001
The film's announcement came in the form of a fashion show in which Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson walked the runway as their characters Derek and Hansel.
- #002
Zoolander 2 marked the end of Stiller's long-running tradition of beginning his directing work by gathering his cast and crew and stomping on a glass bottle for good luck, a nod to Jewish wedding custom. When Stiller stomped on the glass bottle with the Zoolander 2 team, he punctured the sole of his shoe and cut his heel. Stiller called it "a harbinger of things to come for that movie."
- #003
Eddie Murphy had expressed interest in appearing in the film. He had even developed his own pose called "Black Iron."
- #004
Alexander Skarsgård, who played Meekus in Zoolander (2001), had a brief role as "Adam" in this film.
- #005
This is the twelfth film collaboration between Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson.
- #006
This was Jerry Stiller's final role.
- #007
When Hansel and Derek get into the car after arriving in Rome, old footage is used to create the road scene behind them.
- #008
At the start of the film, the outfits Hansel and Zoolander wear when they are humiliated on stage are identical to Mork's clothes from the Ork space suit in Mork & Mindy (1978). Similarly, in the next scene a character uses Mork's catchphrase "Shazbot." Mork was played by Robin Williams, who appeared alongside Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson in the Night at the Museum film series and died shortly before this film was shot. The clothes are a small tribute to Williams.
- #009
The trailer was not narrated by Stephen Hawking, as many people believe. It was narrated using a DECtalk (text-to-speech) machine similar to the one Stephen Hawking used.
- #010
Milla Jovovich has only twenty seconds of screen time.
- #011
According to Ben Stiller, the film takes place fifteen years after Zoolander (2001).
- #012
Although he is billed third, Will Ferrell does not appear in the film for more than an hour.
- #013
Jonah Hill became involved with the film but dropped out.
- #014
The mysterious phone calls Hansel keeps receiving refer to songs by the Police, foreshadowing the fact that these calls come from Sting.
- #015
Filming took place in Rome, Italy, from April to July 2015.
- #016
The film's cast includes six members of Saturday Night Live (1975): Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig, Fred Armisen, Kyle Mooney and Beck Bennett.
- #017
Unlike its predecessor, which was shot in Super 35, Zoolander 2 was shot in the Panavision (anamorphic) 2.39:1 format preferred by cinematographer Dan Mindel.
- #018
Principal photography lasted ninety-seven days.
- #019
Paramount Pictures partnered with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to feature Derek Zoolander in an advertising campaign for the Fiat 500X.
- #020
Fergie first recorded vocals for a remix of the song "Relax" from the first film together with Akon and A$AP Rocky. In the final version of the remix used in this film, Fergie and Akon's vocals were replaced with those of Nitty Scott and Sam Sparro.
- #021
Sting's "Hansel, I am your father" line mimics the fake Star Wars line "Luke, I am your father," which was never actually spoken. Darth Vader actually says, "No, I am your father."
- #022
This film was the first of Kristen Wiig's three 2016 comedies. The second was Ghostbusters (2016), and the third was Sausage Party (2016).
- #023
This film marks the first time cinematographer Dan Mindel shot an entire film digitally, having previously shot all of his motion picture work on 35mm film.
- #024
This was Ben Stiller's first film shot in Panavision (anamorphic) and his second anamorphic film after The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013). He would later use the Panavision anamorphic format on the miniseries Escape at Dannemora (2018), which he directed.
- #025
It was released at the same time as The Brothers Grimsby (2016), another comedy starring Penélope Cruz.
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