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Kim Hollis: With The LEGO Movie, Jump Street and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs franchises all under their highly successful guidance, have Phil Lord and Christopher Miller moved into the upper echelons of Hollywood writer/directors?

Edwin Davies: It definitely seems like they have reached that point and have been recognized as a force by the industry itself. It speaks volumes about their position now that they were approached as one of the few serious replacements for Ivan Reitman on Ghostbusters 3 (and it speaks volumes about their savvy as artists and businessmen that they turned it down, realizing what a poisoned pill that film would probably wind up being). They've directed four films to date, all of which have opened at #1 at the US Box Office (and they co-wrote and produced a fifth), all of which earned (or, in the case of 22 Jump Street, will likely earn) more than $100 million domestically and at least $200 million worldwide. That's a hell of a streak, especially for two guys whose early work consists largely of one great, cultishly adored TV series and a lot of projects that never got off the ground. I'd be very surprised if they aren't being approached for pretty much every comedy currently in development. They are, quite simply, so hot right now.

I'd be interested to find out how well known they are outside of the industry and the world of film fans/critics. Since there's very little overlap between their animated and live-action work, they basically have two separate, wildly successful careers going. I wonder how many people are aware that the same guys who directed The LEGO Movie directed 22 Jump Street. It's not as if you could put their credit for either film on the poster of the other.

Brett Ballard-Beach: Their quartet of features to date have all been positively received by the critics in addition to making fantastic box office. What makes it exciting for me is that they are able to make family films and adult films that feel smart and stupid, subversive and conventional, in equal measures and that somehow have genuine emotional cores to boot. And I still haven't seen Clone High... (please don't hurt me).

David Mumpower: First of all, how did Brett wind up on staff without having watched Clone High? That's an oversight on somebody's part. For that matter, people should not be able to read this column until they have watched Clone High. We have standards to uphold, folks!

I think we are all agreeing on two points. The first is that most people have no idea who these two gentlemen are. That speaks to the nature of being a content creator for giant corporations. We do not see a lot of folks receive name recognition for their work these days, which is unfortunate. The second point is that those same studio executives at giant corporations are fixated upon purpose, and that is the making of the money. Lord and Miller have demonstrated an uncanny ability to create great movies that also earn tremendous box office. That merging of art and commerce is the rarest of commodities in our industry. I have trouble reconciling the fact that the two guys we have been championing for a dozen years now are suddenly power players in the industry. Then again, I would note that the same is true of Joss Whedon, Aaron Sorkin and (to a lesser extent) Edgar Wright. So, we picked the right filmmakers back in the early days of BOP. It's nice that the rest of the world is finally catching up.

Kim Hollis: I love their work and am extremely impressed at the results that they have been able to achieve thus far. With that said, I don't know that they can be considered "upper echelon" at this point. If you want an excellent funny movie, they're absolutely the guys to call. But I also admire that they're selective about their projects. That kind of continued solid decision making is a significant reason why they likely will be amongst the top tier of directors at some point. I'd agree that most people probably have no idea that the same guys who directed The LEGO Movie helmed 21 and 22 Jump Street.

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