"Your Highness" Director David Gordon Green's 10 Favorite Fantasy Movies

The filmmaker behind Danny McBride and James Franco's new mythical comedy cites the film's biggest influences.

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Complex Original

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David Gordon Green’s filmography can’t be stuffed into one genre. The critically acclaimed auteur has written and directed films about youngsters hiding a dead body (George Washington), small-town romance (All The Real Girls), depression leading to suicide (Snow Angels), and, yes, even a stoner action-comedy (Pineapple Express).


So what’s the next logical step? An R-rated sword-and-sorcery romp, naturally. This Friday, Your Highness, Green’s collaboration with longtime friend Danny McBride, hits theaters, complete with scenes centered upon CGI wizards requesting handjobs and a dude wearing a Minotaur penis as a necklace. McBride and James Franco star as sibling princes on a quest to rescue Franco’s fiancé (Zooey Deschanel) from an evil wizard (Justin Theroux) who wants to have sex with her and birth a dragon. It’s a far cry from Green’s independent and serious George Washington days.


For the fun-loving director, the subversive and dirty comedy is an exercise in self-indulgence without any pretension. “Your Highness comes from my childhood,” says Green. “Danny [McBride] and I just had this common obsession when we were kids of watching these movies, so it’s just us getting the opportunity to be 11-years-old, but instead of cardboard swords in the backyard, we’re getting to pull it off at a pretty crazy level. I think our whole careers, Danny and I, are really just us trying to make the 10-year-old, youthful versions of ourselves proud.”


Always down to watch some mythical creatures and fantastical adventure, we asked Green to run through his 10 favorite fantasy movies, the films that he loved as a kid and most inspired Your Highness.

The Dark Crystal

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Labyrinth

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Ladyhawke

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Yor, The Hunter From The Future

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Krull

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Hawk The Slayer

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The Sword And The Sorcerer

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Fire And Ice

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Conan The Destroyer

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The NeverEnding Story

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