Entertainment

Stiller Happy Nobody Tripped During Recent ‘Zoolander’ Stunt

Published

11 years ago

March 24, 2015

Ben Stiller attends the premiere of “While We’re Young” at the Paris Theatre on Monday, March 23, 2015, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

ALICIA RANCILIO, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson made many “Zoolander” fans giddy when they closed the Valentino runway show during Paris Fashion Week earlier this month as their model characters from the 2001 comedy.

It was a maneuver to announce a sequel, “Zoolander 2,” due out next year, which Stiller will also direct. The actors were met with cheers and whistles in person as guests hurried to catch the moment on their cellphones.

“I was a little surprised,” Stiller said about the reaction while attending Monday’s premiere of his movie “While We’re Young.” ”I mean it’s been 15 years since the movie came out so we really didn’t know if people remembered or cared, and it was nice to know that there was a little bit of a connection there that people had.”

Their commitment was admirable, as Stiller and Wilson chose to not only take some of the spotlight from a couture fashion house (with its permission, of course) but also to do it during a fashion show. In Paris.

Stiller said he was “just happy we were able to keep it a surprise and nobody tripped.”

“We thought it would be a fun idea as a way to announce the movie,” said Stiller when asked why they chose Paris Fashion Week to make the announcement. “We sort of had top three designers or brands that we went to and TJ Maxx and Burlington Coat Factory bowed out at the last minute so we went Valentino.”

Besides “Zoolander,” Stiller has had a number of roles that have been memorable and quote-worthy, including his roles in “Meet the Parents,” ”Dodgeball” and “Night at the Museum.”

So which movie is he most recognized for?

“Usually it’s ‘Waterboy,'” joked Stiller, who’s not in it. The star of that film is Adam Sandler.

“While We’re Young” opens Friday.

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Follow Alicia Rancilio online at http://www.twitter.com/aliciar

___

Online:

http://while-were-young.com/

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Associated Press writer John Carucci contributed to this report.

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Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026

Published

4 days ago

September 7, 2026

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Black History

Jackie Wright Champions Bay Area Stories, Filmmakers and Cultural Institutions

As an award-winning communications professional, Wright has worked with corporations, nonprofits, government agencies, educational institutions, artists, and community organizations. In 2026, she expanded that work by launching an introductory public relations class for small businesses and nonprofits, offering practical tools for gaining visibility, shaping messages and building productive relationships with the media.

Published

2 weeks ago

August 30, 2026

Post News Group

Jackie Wright of Wright Enterprises. Photo courtesy of Wright Enterprises.

By Carla Thomas

Jackie Wright has spent more than two decades helping people, organizations and communities understand the power of a well-told story.

As founder and president of Wright Enterprises, a San Francisco-based strategic communications and public affairs firm, Wright has built a career spanning journalism, public relations, media relations, crisis communications, community engagement and multimedia storytelling.

Wright’s commitment to storytelling is also deeply personal. She wrote and co-directed the 15-minute documentary, “Love Separated in Life…Love Reunited in Honor,” which chronicles the story of her parents, Specialist Five (S5 Wyley Wright Jr. and Ouida Fay McClendon Wright. Her father, a U.S. Army helicopter crew chief, died in Vietnam in 1964 while serving as an honor guard during a visit by then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Decades later, Wright and her siblings had their father exhumed from a segregated cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida, and their mother moved from her burial place in Georgia so the couple could be reunited at Arlington National Cemetery in 2014.

The family journey later took Wright and her sister to Vietnam, where they discovered the former military compound that had been named in honor of their father and another fallen soldier. The documentary, centered on love, war, family, racial understanding, and remembrance, earned festival recognition at screenings.

“It was quite an honor to learn about my family’s history and share it on film,” said Wright.

That filmmaking experience complements Wright’s longstanding advocacy for independent cinema. She has served as a media partner and brand ambassador for Bay Area film festivals, including the San Francisco Black Film Festival, Oakland International Film Festival, and the Durban International Film Festival in South Africa.

“It’s important to help filmmakers and underrepresented stories reach broader audiences,” said Wright.

Whether promoting a neighborhood organization, championing an independent filmmaker or preserving her own family history, Wright has remained consistent. Through Wright Enterprises, she has turned communications into both a profession and a form of community service, telling stories that might otherwise go unheard.

“Our stories are an integral part of our history, and our history is not only American history, but worldwide,” she said.