Nicholas Stoller
Quick Facts
Biography
Nicholas Stoller (born 19 March 1976) is a British–American filmmaker. He is known mainly for directing the 2008 comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, its 2010 spin-off/sequel, Get Him to the Greek, and co-writing and executive producing The Muppets and Muppets Most Wanted.
Life and career
Stoller was born in London, England, and raised in Miami, Florida, United States with his brother Matt Stoller. His mother, Phyllis, is a travel tour operator, and his father, Eric C. Stoller, is a bank executive. Stoller was raised Jewish. He attended high school at St. Paul's, a New Hampshire boarding school. He went on to attend Harvard College and wrote for the comedy publication The Harvard Lampoon, and played for the improv comedy troupe The Immediate Gratification Players while an undergraduate.
From 2000 to 2001, Stoller wrote for Judd Apatow's short-lived Fox television series Undeclared and later co-wrote, again with Apatow, the 2005 comedy Fun with Dick and Jane. Stoller’s directorial debut, the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, is a romantic comedy starring Jason Segel, Mila Kunis, Jonah Hill, Kristen Bell, Bill Hader and Russell Brand. The film was produced by Apatow Productions and was released by Universal on 18 April 2008.
In 2007, he wrote a single-camera comedy about a new teacher taking a job at the boarding school he once attended. He wrote Yes Man, starring Jim Carrey; the film was produced by Richard Zanuck and David Heyman. Stoller next wrote and directed a new film for Universal and Apatow Productions titled Get Him to the Greek. The film reteamed Stoller and Apatow with Forgetting Sarah Marshall co-stars Jonah Hill and Russell Brand. The film premiered on 25 May 2010 and opened in theaters on 4 June 2010.
In 2008, Stoller and Segel co-wrote The Muppets, the latest film incarnation to feature the characters in nearly 12 years. The film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and released on November 23, 2011. After the film's success, Stoller and the film's director, James Bobin, wrote Muppets Most Wanted, a semi-sequel to the film.
Stoller also directed The Five-Year Engagement (2012), which he co-wrote with Jason Segel, who also starred. Apatow Productions produced the picture, which is about the ups and downs of a couple's five-year engagement. Stoller directed the film Neighbors, its sequel Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising and shared a screenwriting credit on Sex Tape. In 2016, Stoller wrote and directed the animated comedy film Storks for Warner Animation Group. The film was released on 23 September 2016.
Stoller met Francesca Delbanco (daughter of writer Nicholas Delbanco and granddaughter of cellist Bernard Greenhouse) at a playwriting workshop for Harvard graduates in 2001. They married in a Jewish ceremony in September 2005. They have two daughters.
Filmography
Films
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2005 | Fun with Dick and Jane | No | Yes | No | |
2007 | Blades of Glory | No | No | No | Soundtrack writer Song: "Blades of Glory" |
2008 | Forgetting Sarah Marshall | Yes | No | No | |
Yes Man | No | Yes | No | ||
2009 | Adventureland | No | No | No | Thanks |
2010 | Get Him to the Greek | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Gulliver's Travels | No | Yes | No | ||
2011 | The Muppets | No | Yes | Yes | Executive producer |
2012 | The Five-Year Engagement | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
2013 | Turbo | No | No | No | Additional screenplay material |
2014 | Muppets Most Wanted | No | Yes | Yes | Executive producer |
Neighbors | Yes | No | No | ||
Sex Tape | No | Yes | No | ||
2016 | Zoolander 2 | No | Yes | No | |
The Brothers Grimsby | No | No | No | Special thanks | |
Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising | Yes | Yes | No | ||
Storks | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
2017 | Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie | No | Yes | No |
TV
Year | TV Series | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | Strangers with Candy | Writer | Episode: #2.10: A Price Too High for Riches |
2001–2002 | Undeclared | Writer, Story Editor | Various Episodes |
2010 | In the House with Peter Bart & Peter Guber | Himself | Episode: Dennis Quaid/Damon Wayans/Nicholas Stoller |
2010–2014 | Made in Hollywood | Himself | Episodes: #5.28 and #9.28 |
2010–2014 | Last Call with Carson Daly | Himself | Episodes: Episode dated 26 May 2010 and Nicholas Stoller/Theo Von/Cerebral Ballzy |
2012 | Entry Level | Director, Writer, Executive Producer | TV Movie |
2014 | IMDb: What to Watch | Himself | Episode: Neighbors |
2014 | Just Seen It | Himself | Episode: Neighbors, Interview with Nicholas Stoller, Devil's Knot, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 |
2015 | The Carmichael Show | Writer | |
2015 | The Grinder | Director, Executive Producer | |
TBA | Friends From College | Creator, Writer, Director, Executive Producer |