The film’s producers were thrilled with the layers that Faber & Fisher added to their original concept.
“Steve and Bob did a great job with the script,” says Andrew Panay. “They created these incredible characters and a really funny story and were able to mix the wedding crashing concept with the dynamic of meeting girls who change their lives.”
New Line Cinema also clicked with the Wedding Crashers pitch and quickly set up the project. Faber & Fisher then delivered a hilarious first draft of the script that landed on the radar of director David Dobkin. Once Dobkin was on board, he enlisted actors Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, who he had directed before (Vaughn in Clay Pigeons and Wilson in Shanghai Knights).
“I had just finished working with Owen and did my first film with Vince, so I thought it would be amazing if I could find a script that would enable me to pair these two guys up together on screen,” says Dobkin. “The Wedding Crashers script crossed my path and I could hear their voices in the screenplay. Luckily for me, both Owen and Vince were really into it and loved the characters in the film.”
For Vince Vaughn, the script represented exactly the kind of comedic material he enjoys.
“I have always liked films that have a story within the comedy which is based in reality and human circumstances,” says Vaughn. “I loved the concept - two guys going to weddings pretending to be people they are not in order to meet and hook up with girls. You’re following these extreme characters through situations we’ve all thought about or have done on a smaller scale. It’s an exaggerated circumstance, but one that is completely relatable – crashing a party that you’re not necessarily invited to.”
For Owen Wilson, Wedding Crashers offered the opportunity to reunite with director Dobkin and Vaughn.
“I liked the way David worked on Shanghai Nights and remembered how comfortable he made me feel creatively on set,” says Wilson. “I worked with Vince on Starsky and Hutch, but we didn’t have many scenes together, so it was a really enticing prospect to do a buddy comedy with him.”
In approaching their roles, Vaughn and Wilson agreed with Dobkin that one of the keys to the film was ensuring that their characters be likable.
“John and Jeremy’s fun-loving nature was an element of the characters that Owen, Vince and I talked about very early on,” says Dobkin. “We all felt that it was very important for their characters to be sympathetic as opposed to dark and predatorial. Being the life of the party is what attracts the women, but these characters really do love the food, the bands, entertaining the kids and dressing up in their suits.”
Dobkin adds, "having worked with both Owen and Vince separately, I was excited by what the creative potential would be with the three of us together. I am a strong believer in maximizing a film's potential through script development. Owen and Vince always make significant and substantial contributions to story and character. With Owen you get the added heavy artillery of ideas one can expect from an Oscar nominated screenwriter. And Vince is without a doubt as sharp and inventive as anyone when it comes to working a script."
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