Ben Stiller invaded the zeitgeist like few have with 2001’s Zoolander, and fans have been clamoring to see the dimwitted male model character make his triumphant return ever since.  Movement on the follow-up finally began in 2010, with Tropic Thunder scribe Justin Theroux set to co-write the script and direct.  All seemed well and good until Paramount decided it had budgetary issues with the script, and the project has been in a state of limbo for the past couple of years.

Steve recently got the chance to talk with Stiller at the press day for the sci-fi comedy The Watch, and the actor gave a minor—yet slightly optimistic—update on Zoolander 2.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say.

Ben Stiller is currently doing the press rounds for his latest film Tower Heist, and that bodes well for us because he’s dropped some nuggets of info on some of his more anticipated projects. At the top of the list is the Zoolander sequel that he’s been working on. He wrote the script last year with Tropic Thunder scribe Justin Theroux, and while we knew that the project would pick up years later in Europe with Zoolander and Owen Wilson’s Hansel dealing with the effects of old age, no other plot details were known. Now the actor has teased what the plot of the film will involve, and it’s pretty perfect. Hit the jump to see what he had to say, including updates on a third Night at the Museum and the possibility of a fourth film in the Meet the Parents franchise.

Last time Ben Stiller host Saturday Night Live, it was 1998, aka the pre-Zoolander era.  By the time Stiller returned to host SNL last night, the show had created the perfect counterpart for Stiller’s male model character in flamboyant New York scenester Stefon (played by Bill Hader).  While all involved are trying to get Zoolander 2 going in features, Stiller revived the character for an appearance with Stefon on last night’s Weekend Update.  Get your Zoolander fix in the clip posted after the jump.

As a bonus, look for the show’s Moneyball parody, in which Billy Beane (Taran Killam doing a great Brad Pitt impression) turns to steroids instead of statistics.

In the new raunchy comedy Your Highness, actor Justin Theroux plays Leezar, the medieval wizard with less than stellar magical prowess. When Leezar kidnaps Belladonna (Zooey Deschanel), the fiancée of the Kingdom of Mourne’s crown prince Fabious (James Franco), in order to impregnate her with a dragon, the lazy Thadeous (Danny McBride) must join his brother in an epic quest to save the fair maiden before Leezar can fulfill the ancient prophecy.

At the film’s press day, Justin Theroux talked about going all-out to play the films over-the-top villain, collaborating with director David Gordon Green and actor/screenwriter Danny McBride on the creation of this character, and finding the vulnerability and insecurity in Leezar. He also talked about his own career as a screenwriter and gave an update on the status of Zoolander 2, for which he and Ben Stiller just completed a draft of the script. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

If anyone is dying for the Zoolander sequel, they can see their beloved character Derek again soon, though on a slightly smaller screen. According to Ben Stiller (via an interview with the NY Times), Paramount Digital Entertainment and Red Hour Films (owned by Stiller) have made a deal to create a series of animated shorts about the supermodel Derek Zoolander.

Stiller will return to voice the character of Zoolander, and is hoping to draw in Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell to reprise their characters as well. As Stiller said, “You don’t want to have the guy who did the Hanna-Barbera cartoons come and do the voices.  No offense to the Hanna-Barbera cartoons – I’m a huge Scooby-Doo fan.”

The deal also includes a series in which Stiller will star, called Billy Glimmer: Entertainer of the Century. For more information on both projects and Zoolander 2, continue reading after the jump.

During the last couple of days we’ve reported some heartbreaking news to comedy fans.  First, there was the news that the sequel to Anchorman was apparently dead after Paramount had passed on the project due to some budget issues .  Then, a few days later, came news via Ben Stiller’s twitter that Zoolander 2 was having some problems getting a green light over at Paramount due to some funding issues too.

However, Deadline reports that now turns out that both projects might still have some life to them after all.  To find out why Paramount is hesitant about making both films and why there is still some hope that we might see the further adventures of Ron Burgundy and Derek Zoolander on the big screen soon hit the jump.

It looks like Derek Zoolander is so not hot right now.  Even though Ben Stiller is ready to make the sequel happen, the green light (and paper) needs to come from the suits at Paramount.  Similar to our report on the fate of our favorite chauvinistic anchorman, studio financing is not looking too good for the male model.

A recent update from Ben Stiller’s twitter (via DarkHorizons) revealed that the potential size of the budget seems to be the reason we might not be getting to see Derek challenge Hansel to another walk-off: “Ron Burgundy and Derek Zoolander looking to appear in sequels. Both men destitute, without means or intellect to fund their own comebacks.”

We all know how Hollywood works by now. This doesn’t mean the project is necessarily dead. Let’s hope that this is just a minor speed bump on the catwalk to Zoolander 2.

Last week we posted the amazing news that Ben Stiller was moving ahead with a sequel to Zoolander and Justin Theorux was set to co-write and direct the project with Jonah Hill playing the villain.

So when I sat down with Stiller at this weekend’s junket for Greenberg in New York City, I made sure to ask him if the report was accurate.  I also asked if Will Ferrell’s Mugato would be returning.  Thankfully, he said they really are working on a script and he beleives the project is going to happen.

And if you’d like to know how Mugato will be used in the film…you’ll have to watch the interview after the jump:

After a nine year hiatus, Zoolander 2 is going into pre-production with Justin Theorux set to direct and co-write the film. Deadline reports that the script is being handled by Theroux and Ben Stiller, who not only played the title character, but co-wrote and directed the first film. Theroux has worked with Stiller before on Tropic Thunder and is also the writer for this summer’s Iron Man 2. Theroux has announced he plans on attending fashion week in Paris to “immerse himself on what is current in fashion”. Currently Owen Wilson is not attached to reprise his role as Hansel but there are negotiations to have Jonah Hill play the villain.

Hit the jump for details on how Zoolander became a cult hit and for past rumors about this long-awaited sequel.