James Vanderbilt Recalls Making ‘Zodiac’ with David Fincher (Exclusive)

James Vanderbilt has nothing but good things to say about making Zodiac nearly 20 years ago. 

The 2007 movie, directed by David Fincher, was based on two nonfiction books about the real-life Zodiac serial killer by Robert Graysmith. It featured an all-star cast, including Robert Downey Jr., Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Edwards.

Vanderbilt, 50, wrote the script for the high-profile project after having worked on a string of movies in 2003. While promoting his new film Nuremberg, which he wrote and directed, he looked back on working with Fincher on the mystery thriller. 

“It was really a dream for a young screenwriter to have someone of that level to direct your film,” Vanderbilt told PEOPLE at a New York City screening of the movie earlier this month. “And it was also the first film I stayed on all the way through.”

“I remember Fincher one day saying, ‘Look, it’s you and me. We’re the creative nucleus of this, and you’re going to see it all the way through.’ Getting to sit next to a guy like that and watch him do his thing so well, it just was a dream come true,” Vanderbilt continued. 

He also mentioned that he saw Downey and Gyllenhaal this year, and praised Ruffalo and Edwards as great actors. 

Prior to Zodiac, Fincher directed several hit films, including 1995’s Seven, 1999’s Fight Club and 2002’s Panic Room.

Vanderbilt hopes that his new movie will leave the audience with questions — a lesson that he learned from working with the acclaimed director. 

“I always go back to when I worked with David Fincher, and he said something that always stuck with me, which is, ‘Good movies make you ask questions, bad movies give you all the answers.’ So I hope we’ve made a good movie and I hope it makes people ask questions,” the filmmaker said. 

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Nuremberg, based on the nonfiction book The Nazi and the Psychiatrist by Jack El-Hai, follows U.S. Army psychiatrist Lt. Col. Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) as he analyzes the mental state of Adolf Hitler’s right-hand man, Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe), and other Nazi officials.

The movie also stars Michael Shannon, Leo Woodall, Richard E. Grant, Colin Hanks, Mark O’Brien and John Slattery.