- Originally meant to direct Borat (2006); however, he quit the production after shooting the infamous rodeo/"Star Spangled Banner" scene, due to creative differences with Sacha Baron Cohen.
- He is the first director to receive an Oscar nomination for directing a comic book film.
- Attended NYU Film School but dropped out before graduation to promote his first documentary Hated: GG Allin & the Murder Junkies (1993).
- Directed 1 actor to an Oscar win: Joaquin Phoenix, who won for Joker (2019).
- Has cast Matt Walsh in most of his movies.
- Frequently uses the music of Bill Withers and Wolfmother in his movies.
- A co-creator of the New York Underground Film Festival (along with Andrew Gurland), Phillips was an expert at playing the media and causing sensation. He made a name for himself with Hated: GG Allin & the Murder Junkies (1993) and latched on to the controversy surrounding the documentary ChickenHawk (1994).
- His father Peter was born in Blaby, Leicestershire, England, to Jewish emigrant parents, Norbert E. Bunzl, who was born in Prague, and Anna (Fuchs), who was born in Zboriv, Ukraine.
- He has directed one film that has been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Joker (2019).
- Attended NYU Tisch School of the Arts with Andrew Gurland.
- Born on the same date as Nicole de Boer.
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