Scot Armstrong

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Scot Armstrong
Scot Armstrong by Chris Cuffaro (cropped).png
Born (1970-09-22) September 22, 1970 (age 54)
Occupations
Known for Dice
The Hangover: Part II
Semi-Pro
Old School

Scot Armstrong is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. [1] [2] He is credited with writing or co-writing numerous comedy films, including Old School , The Hangover: Part II , Semi-Pro , Road Trip , and many others. [3] [4] He is also the writer and director of the 2015 film, Search Party . [5] The film was released in the US in May 2016. [6] Also in 2016, his TV series, Dice , premiered on Showtime. [7]

Contents

Early life

Armstrong grew up in Wheaton, Illinois, in the western suburbs of Chicago. He attended Wheaton North High School where he wrestled. [8] He attended college at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. [9]

Career

Armstrong at a USO performance for US troops in Romania in 2020 Scot Armstrong USO (49346674798) (cropped).jpg
Armstrong at a USO performance for US troops in Romania in 2020

Armstrong started out working at an advertising agency in Chicago in his early 20s. While working there, he took night classes at The Second City and ImprovOlympic where he studied under Del Close. He also performed (and continues to perform) with the Upright Citizens Brigade in groups/shows including Mother, Feature Feature, Asscatt, and Soundtrack. [3] [8] [10] During this time, he met Todd Phillips whom he hired to direct a commercial for Miller Genuine Draft. [10] In 2000, the two released their first feature film together, Road Trip, which Armstrong co-wrote and Phillips directed. [11]

Armstrong and Phillips would end up working on a variety of other films together including Old School (2003), Starsky & Hutch (2004), School for Scoundrels (2006), and The Hangover: Part II (2011). [10] [12] [13] Outside of his partnership with Phillips, Armstrong was also responsible for uncredited rewrites of Elf and Bad Santa . [12] In 2007, he co-wrote the Farrelly Brothers' film, The Heartbreak Kid . [10] The following year, Semi-Pro, which was Armstrong's first solo-written film, was released. [4] [12]

In 2011, Armstrong announced the concept for his directorial debut, Road to Nardo. The film was set to begin production in 2011. [13] Its name was changed to Search Party and the distribution rights were picked up by Universal in 2013. [5] The film was eventually released in 2015 [14] and was released in May 2016 in the United States. [6] Armstrong's production company, American Work Inc., has also produced several films and TV shows including Hesher , NBC's Best Friends Forever , a TV series adaptation of Problem Child , and the USA Network's Playing House (among others). [10] [13] [15]

In 2015, Showtime gave Armstrong's show, Dice, a straight-to-series order of six episodes. [16] The series—which Armstrong writes, directs, and produces—follows the exploits of a fictional version of Andrew Dice Clay and premiered on Showtime in 2016. [7] [8]

Armstrong also co-hosts the UCB Sports & Leisure Podcast, alongside Matt Walsh. [17]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleDirectorProducerWriter
2000 Road Trip Yes
2003 Old School Yes
2004 Starsky & Hutch Yes
2006 School for Scoundrels Yes
2007 The Heartbreak Kid Yes
2008 Semi-Pro Yes
2011 The Hangover: Part II Yes
2014 Search Party YesYesYes

Executive producer

Uncredited rewrite

Television

YearTitleDirectorExecutive
Producer		WriterNotes
2012 Best Friends Forever Yes
Animal Practice Yes
2014–2017 Playing House Yes
2015Problem ChildYesYes
2016–2017 Dice YesYesYesCreator

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References

  1. ↑ Wampler, Scott (26 May 2011). "Screenwriter Scot Armstrong Talks THE HANGOVER PART 2, What's up with OLD SCHOOL DOS, His Directorial Debut ROAD TO NARDO, and More". Collider . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  2. ↑ Topel, Fred (24 May 2011). "Interview - Hangover II Writer Scot Armstrong - CraveOnline". CraveOnline . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 Fennessey, Sean (6 June 2011). "The GQA: The Hangover Part II Screenwriter Scot Armstrong". GQ . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  4. 1 2 Smith, Julia (2 June 2011). "Scot Armstrong, Co-Writer of The Hangover Part II and Old School: Interview on The Sound of Young America". Maximum Fun . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  5. 1 2 Roxborough, Scott (6 March 2013). "Universal Acquires 'Search Party'". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  6. 1 2 Cranswick, Amie (1 April 2016). "New red band trailer for Search Party". Flickering Myth. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  7. 1 2 Maglio, Tony (11 February 2016). "Andrew Dice Clay Acts Like It's Still 1989 in First Trailer for Showtime Series (Video)". TheWrap . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Zimmerman, Peter (13 April 2016). "Hollywood screenwriter Scot Armstrong: "I wanted to be friends with the funniest people"". WGN Radio . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  9. ↑ "From 'Road Trip' to 'Search Party': Writer-Turned-Director Scot Armstrong's Hollywood Journey". www.yahoo.com. 16 May 2016. Retrieved 2022-08-04.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Metz, Nina (27 May 2011). "From beer commercials to 'The Hangover Part II'". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Holden, Stephen (19 May 2000). "FILM REVIEW; Restaurant Protocol And Other Helpful Tips". The New York Times . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 Falcon, Jesse (1 February 2007). "Old School's Scot Armstrong". Cracked.com . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 Barone, Matt (24 May 2011). "Interview: Scot Armstrong Talks Writing "The Hangover Part II" And Drug-Dealing Monkeys". Complex . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  14. ↑ McCahill, Mike (28 May 2015). "Search Party review – slovenly runaround in tired bromance". The Guardian . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  15. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (16 September 2014). "NBC Adapting Movie 'Problem Child' As Comedy Written By Scot Armstrong". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  16. ↑ Michelle, Kara (23 March 2015). "Showtime Gives Scott Armstrong's Sitcom 'Dice' a Six Episode Straight-To-Series Order". Celebeat. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  17. ↑ "Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Podcast Network reveals new slate". The Laugh Button. 6 May 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
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