DreamWorks Chooses 'Ugly' Trio for Comedy
Fri February 21, 2003 02:40 AM ET
By Marc Graser
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - DreamWorks has chosen its "Ugly Americans."

Travis Wester, Michelle Trachtenberg and Jacob Pitts are set to star in the European road trip comedy, which is expected to shoot in Prague in April. The title will change, the studio said.

DreamWorks-based Montecito Pictures is producing the $20 million-budgeted comedy, being directed by first-time helmers Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schaffer.

The directing trio, credited with scripting Universal Pictures' upcoming adaptation of "The Cat in the Hat," also penned "Americans."

The plot revolves around two American high school pals on the verge of graduation. One is passing German thanks to his German pen pal, who translates his homework. But when the German expresses feelings for the teen and suggests a meeting, the student rebuffs the mysterious writer, thinking it's the act of a sexual predator. He soon discovers the pen pal is actually a fetching fraulein, and the pair sets off on a trans-European road trip.

Already considered top scribes, Berg, Mandel and Schaffer had been looking for an opportunity to segue into directing. They grabbed headlines when they landed $3 million, along with a hefty backend, to not only write "Americans" but also direct it.

Wester has been making the rounds on television, landing roles on MTV's "Undressed" and "Spyder Games." "Americans" would become his first major studio role.

Known for her recurring role on UPN's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" as the little sister to the title character, Trachtenberg has also appeared in Disney's "Inspector Gadget" and Nickelodeon's "Harriet the Spy" pics.

Newcomer Pitts has had roles in Paramount's "K-19: The Widowmaker" and the Lifetime television movie "We Were the Mulvaneys.