Adam Shankman has directed Mandy Moore in her first major movie "A Walk to Remember." He choreographed Brendan Fraser in "Dudley Do-Right" and made runaway hit comedies with Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey in "The Wedding Planner" and Steve Martin and Queen Latifah in "Bringing Down the House."

He’s worked with Paula Abdul, Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando, Shirley MacLaine and designed dance steps for Sarah Michelle Gellar in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

Then, Disney came to him with his most challenging task ever — put "Fast and Furious" action star Vin Diesel in a family comedy and make him funny.

Also, mix in a bunch of kids, a few notable TV stars, two babies and a duck. Then, give the project a name that will ultimately have people joke "it sucks" before they even see it.

Surprisingly, Shankman took "The Pacifier" in stride.

"I had such a good time with this movie, it was a total hoot," Shankman says in a private interview with Zap2it.com. "I mean when else are you going to see Vin Diesel change a diaper or direct a musical?"

Producer Roger Birnbaum immediately went to Shankman with the odd story of a Navy SEAL out of water, finding himself guarding the children of a scientist who was murdered. Diesel finds himself reluctantly diapering a baby and then directing kids in a school version of "The Sound of Music."

"Adam is a very funny, very bright populist filmmaker who we thought was the perfect choice," Birnbaum says. "He did a tremendous job of managing a motion picture that combines action, comedy, emotion, big stars, little kids, even a duck."

Diesel tells Zap2it he also trusted the flamboyant Shankman implicitly.

"There were moments of real brilliance on Adam’s part, like when we were filming the ’Sound of Music’ sequence," Diesel says. "It was nostalgic in a way, going back to our New York theater past."

Shankman says the "XXX" action star is in reality "a big happy puppy, and you’re going to see a very different side to him."

Not convinced that Diesel would deal well with kids at first, however, Shankman brought in his nine-month-old nephew Tyler at their first meeting so he could see how he handled it. "When I saw him cradle the baby, and how comfortable he was, I knew he could do it," the director says. "He’s got big arms, he’s developed a brand and he’s smart."

"Gilmore Girls" star Lauren Graham plays Diesel’s love interest. She says, "I’d been trying to work with Adam Shankman and he offered this to me. I knew I’d have a great time and it fit."

What didn’t fit was the wrestling outfit Shankman sent to Brad Garrett, the big brother in "Everyone Loves Raymond."

"If I saw this outfit, I never would have signed up," Garrett laughs. "Adam is such a dear, he said, ’I’m send you a little outfit’ and a Fed Ex envelope comes to my house, and you know it’s not going to be good."

Garrett’s outfit, and his battle with Diesel, is one of the biggest laughs of the film. "It was very difficult for me to wear it, but I had to believe that the character wore it and thought he looked great. It was embarrassing, my wife saw it, my kids saw it and said, ’What are you doing?’ "

During interviews, Shankman is interrupted by Diesel who is asked whether his "Pacifier" character could whoop Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character in "Kindergarten Cop."

Shankman leaps to his feet and says, "Of course he could! Any day!"

"That movie was very violent, take a look at it, it’s brutal," the director says.

Calming down and sitting back down demurely, Shankman says, "The world is in a dark place right now. But, I know how to tell stories."