Character Ethan is not like me: Zach

Due Date, the latest Hollywood flick that’s making waves in the film world is indeed a laugh riot. The movie,which tells the story of a soon-to-be father (Robert Downey Jr) and his cross-country trip to make it back in time for his baby’s birth.
His only roadblock is the dubious passenger (Zach Galifianakis) who’s along for the ride.
Here’s a tête-à-tête with Robert who plays Peter Highman, Zach who plays Ethan Tremblay and director Todd Phillips.
Is this character closer to your stand-up persona than the other film characters you’ve played?
Zach: No, I don’t think Ethan Tremblay is anything like me. He’s a lot more complicated.
What’s your take on the character, how he makes random statements that ends up being funny?
Zach: Ethan has no idea he’s being funny. He says things, but he doesn’t understand why they’re funny. I think people that are not self-aware — the truck with no brakes kind — are really funny.
This movie is really about fatherhood — about becoming a father and losing a father.
Todd: It’s a movie about Ethan who’s going through the trauma of having just lost his father and Peter who’s about to become one, for the first time. It’s about why they needed to meet at this moment and why Peter needs to travel with this kind of man-child who was going through this traumatic experience but really is a purely loving creature, much like a child would be, who just needs some adjustments.
How did you work out the scenes together?
Todd: This film had an interesting process because Robert has a very producer-like brain. He and I had lots of spirited discussions every morning. He has an aversion to things that are typed. The great thing about Robert is that he made me a better director as he’s constantly challenging what we were doing every day.
Zach: Each morning there was a meeting. I would read the minutes from the last meeting... ‘Todd yells. Robert yells back. Let’s get on with the new meeting.’ There was a discussion for at least about an hour each morning, sometimes longer.
Todd: Sometimes three.
Which of you would be most likely to break up laughing in the middle of a take?
Robert: I’m 85 times more professional than Zach.
Todd: Zach doesn’t really break up. He just goes over his line halfway and then makes this choking sound.
Robert: He has a ghastly tic, particularly when we’re doing press. It takes him 45 years to answer one question, when he’s trying to think about the answer, stutters then judges himself and then starts over.
Zach: My face is turning red. Don’t interpret it as being embarrassed, it’s rage. The colour of my face is rage.
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