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The real story behind Starship Troopers director Paul Verhoeven removing his own pants when filming the memorable shower scene
How Dina Meyer goaded Starship Troopers director Paul Verhoeven and cinematographer Jost Vacano into dropping their pants during filming
Chicago's C2E2 2025 was three days of comics, community, celebrities, and pizza (Pequod's, if you want to know). Read our full recap of the weekend, watch all of the Main Stage panel videos, see all the best cosplay photos, and more. And if you want to do it all again next year, we've got the dates for C2E2 2026, too.
The Starship Troopers set had a very unusual dress code.
The 1997 science fiction war satire contains a co-ed shower scene, and some of the cast weren’t entirely comfortable with it
“There’s the shower scene. That was kind of challenging,” Dina Meyer said during The Only Good Bug Is a Dead Bug: A Starship Troopers Reunion panel at C2E2 2025.
“That was really hard,” Casper Van Dien added.
Dina Meyer addressed the exaggerated story of director Paul Verhoeven and cinematographer Jost Vacano stripping down and filming the scene nude. According to Meyer, that’s not exactly what happened, but they did remove some clothing.
“Despite what some of you may have heard, Paul and Jost didn’t do the scene naked from behind the camera. What happened was, he was laughing at us that we were so reluctant to take our clothes off in the mixed company that we were in, and he says to me, ‘Come on! I don’t understand what’s wrong with you Americans. What’s the big deal? It’s the body. Take your clothes off.’”
As Meyer recounts, she told the filmmakers to put their money where their mouth was “And I said, ‘Oh yeah, you’re a big shot, because you’re able to wear your clothes behind the camera while everybody else has to walk around naked and do a scene like it’s no big deal that we’re naked.’ And he goes, ‘Well, I don’t understand.’ And I said, ‘Well, if it’s not such a big deal, why don’t you take your clothes off.’”
What happened next shocked everyone on set.
“And [Paul] looks over at Jost Vacano, and Yost goes, ‘Oh, okay.’ And the two of them dropped their pants briefly. They didn’t film the scene like that.”
The incident made Casper Van Dien uncomfortable.
“And they said, ‘Okay, are you guys ready to shoot?’ And you’re like, ‘[Covers face] Oh god, no please! For the rest of my life, I have to know…please let’s just pull them up and let’s do it.’”
But Meyer just laughs it off. “Sorry, guys. I’m forever apologizing for that moment,” Meyer said.
Popverse members can watch The Only Good Bug Is a Dead Bug: A Starship Troopers Reunion from C2E2 2025's Main Stage powered by CGC x JSA for yourself as part of Popverse's all-encompassing coverage of C2E2 2025.
About C2E2 2025
Comics, cosplay, gaming, authors, and anime abound in the only pop culture convention in the heart of Downtown Chicago! We've gathered your favorite celebrities, unique exhibitors, incredible comic creators, and larger-than-life literary authors into one place to celebrate the fandoms you love. From the halls of Artist Alley to the depths of the Show Floor, our goal is to provide a space of creativity and fun, but most importantly, one that cultivates a sense of belonging, safety, and inclusiveness.
Dates
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Location
Chicago's McCormick Place
United States
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