Next after Hangover

With the raunchy amnesia of THE HANGOVER barreling past $200 million, director Todd Phillips probably has his pick of projects. But he seems to be sticking with what’s worked for him so far: road trips and funny dudes.

First he’ll reunite with bearded jester Zach Galifianakis for the comedy DUE DATE, about “an expectant dad and his unlikely travel companion (Galifianakis) race cross-country in hopes of making it home for the birth of his first child.” The anxious father-to-be hasn’t been found yet, but the flick will shoot in October so the cast should come together fast.

Right after that, he’ll break out the roofies and strippers again for THE HANGOVER 2, which was in the works before the first even hit screens — Warner Bros. wisely asked for Phillips to start a sequel script as soon as they saw early test scores. Phillips was also smart to stand by his original cast — by relinquishing his fee to get the movie made and instead becoming an investment partner, he’ll end up with around $35 million in his pocket. Yow.

The downside of this sudden schedule zoom is that Phillips has exited his longstanding pet project MAN-WITCH, although Galifianakis is still expected to star.