rash, outspoken and infectiously energetic, John Landis embodies the vigor and vitality of old-school filmmaking, preferring studios run by people, not corporations, and special effects that enhance, not dominate, a film.
Over his 30-plus year career behind the camera, Landis has made the massively successful and influential comedies Animal House and The Blues Brothers, as well as scared us silly with the tongue-in-cheek An American Werewolf in London and Innocent Blood.
A high school dropout from L.A., Landis spent his youth working as a production assistant, stunt player and bit player on films in Europe before getting the chance to direct his funny, low-budget debut, Schlock, in 1973. Four years later he directed the irreverent cult comedy classic Kentucky Fried Movie, which was penned by the writers of Airplane! and The Naked Gun. Its success landed him a development deal for The Blues Brothers and a gig directing the Delta Tau Chi shenanigans of Animal House.
Following those classic comedies, Landis brought us the horror fest An American Werewolf in London in 1981. In 1983, his most controversial year, the class war comedy Trading Places was a smash hit, and he directed the most famous music video of all time, Michael Jackson's "Thriller." But his good streak soon changed: The death of actor Vic Morrow and two Vietnamese children in a helicopter accident on the set of his segment for The Twilight Zone movie landed him in court, although he was later acquitted of involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment charges.
Since then, the prolific Landis has produced his share of hits (Spies Like Us, Coming To America, Beverly Hills Cop III) and misses (Into the Night, Oscar, The Stupids). After the lukewarm reception of The Blues Brothers 2000 and Landis's increasing frustration over Hollywood's corporate mentality, the director has kept a low profile, helming smaller projects like television episodes (Masters of Horror) and straight-to-video releases (Susan's Plan).
Landis's latest effort is "Nightmare in Lace," an episode for the NBC series Fear Itself, from a script written by Victor Salva (who directed Jeepers Creepers), about a bride who is sent a note on her wedding day reading, "The person you are marrying is a serial killer." Last December he unleashed the gut-busting documentary Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project, which aired on HBO and came out on DVD. It chronicled the life of the caustic comedian and was a labor of love for the director, who has known the comic since meeting him on the set of Kelly's Heroes in Yugoslavia in 1969. During its American premiere at the New York Film Festival, Landis sat down with Playboy.com. With the director wired from overwork, Brussels sprouts were practically flying and coffee nearly splashed as he attacked his brunch and animatedly discussed Mr. Warmth, sounded off on the new Hollywood and revisited classic and controversial moments from his career.
