A proficient director of light Hollywood entertainments aimed primarily at young male audiences, Herek began as a production assistant for Roger Corman's New World Pictures soon after graduating college. He worked for a time in the editing department and earned screen credit as assistant editor of "Androids" (1982). Herek made his feature directorial and screenwriting debut with an amusing and smartly crafted, if rather modest, low-budget "Gremlins" knockoff, "Critters" (1986). Herek fared better directing "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" (1989), a riotous sleeper that showcased Keanu Reeves
