‹ All movies

The Rewatchables ·

What About Bob?

year 1991decade 90sdirector Frank Ozgenre Comedy
host Bill Simmonshost Sean Fennesseyhost Van Lathanproducer Craig Horlbeck
All 19 categories

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award · 1:07:27

The famous Fresh Prince of Bel-Air father-departure scene is accused of copying a basically similar Growing Pains scene in which young Leo reaches an emotional place.

Sean Fennessey: A participant introduces this as one of his all-time hottest takes.

Bill Simmons: The famous Fresh Prince scene with Will Smith, the observed Ben Vareen, and Uncle Phil is said to echo a basically similar Growing Pains episode in which young Leo reaches an emotional place.

The film

What About Bob? (1991)

Directed by Frank Oz · Comedy

99 minutes

IMDb Letterboxd JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Bill Murray Bob Wiley
Richard Dreyfuss Dr. Leo Marvin
Julie Hagerty Fay Marvin
Charlie Korsmo Sigmund "Siggy" Marvin
Kathryn Erbe Anna Marvin
Fran Brill Lily Marvin
Tom Aldredge Mr. Guttman
Susan Willis Mrs. Guttman
Doris Belack Dr. Catherine Tomsky

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

8:50

Recasting Couch

Tiffani-Amber Thiessen is proposed for a clearly high-school-aged Anna, then an all-Black remake develops around Ster...

Tiffani-Amber Thiessen is proposed for a clearly high-school-aged Anna, then an all-Black remake develops around Sterling K. Brown, Sanaa Lathan, J.B. Smoove, and Tracy Morgan, with Kevin Hart rejected.

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:08:50Read transcript
  • Will Ferrell is proposed as Bob because he could balance an annoying character with likability.
  • Phil Hartman is proposed as Leo because the role needs rage that remains comic. — Van Lathan
  • The existing cast is first declared perfect before the discussion pivots to an all-Black version. — Bill Simmons
  • Tiffani-Amber Thiessen is proposed if Anna is meant to read as an unmistakable high-school student. — Bill Simmons
  • The panel worries that a more conspicuous teen-star casting would disrupt the family’s intentionally ordinary quality.
  • Sterling K. Brown is proposed for Leo in the all-Black version. — Bill Simmons
  • Sanaa Lathan is proposed for Leo’s wife. — Van Lathan
  • Kevin Hart is identified as the obvious commercial Bob choice but rejected because the panel doubts he would disappear into the character. — Van Lathan
  • J.B. Smoove becomes the preferred Bob because he can charm the family while aggravating Sterling K. Brown’s Leo. — Van Lathan
  • Kenan Thompson is considered for Leo as an undervalued performer. — Van Lathan
  • Tracy Morgan is also proposed as Bob and receives strong support.
  • The remake discussion pivots to an all-Black cast for What About Bob. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More Recasting Couch answers
26:33

Roger Ebert's review
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:26:33Read transcript
  • The movie is reported to have cost thirty-nine million dollars and earned sixty-four million. — Bill Simmons
  • Roger Ebert is reported to have given the movie three stars. — Bill Simmons
  • Ebert is reported to have called it Bill Murray’s best movie since Ghostbusters. — Bill Simmons
  • Gene Siskel is reported to have disliked the movie because Dreyfuss’s anger felt excessive.
  • The panel understands Siskel’s objection but disagrees because Dreyfuss’s anger powers the comedy and trailer.
Share this discussion More Roger Ebert's review answers
27:55

Most Rewatchable Scene

Split: the family dinner; Leo’s “never gone” breakdown

Split: the family dinner; Leo’s “never gone” breakdown

In the discussion (15)
Approx. transcript time · 00:27:55Read transcript
  • The opening credits are praised for quickly establishing Bob’s instability but explicitly withheld as the final choice. — Bill Simmons
  • The opening therapy session quickly establishes Bob’s fears and the Neil Diamond marriage joke. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s face on the Baby Steps book cover makes his narcissism part of the therapy scene. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob waiting for Leo’s call at the diner introduces the Gutmans’ anger toward Leo. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob sailing is an early favorite despite questions about how readily Anna includes him. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo using puppets to order Anna away from Bob exposes his own instability. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob teaching Siggy to dive turns into a successful moment of encouragement. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob’s delighted groans over dinner and question about hand-shucked corn make the family meal a favorite. — Bill Simmons
  • The family gravitates toward Bob after he helps during Leo’s choking episode. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob interrupting the television interview and the Gutmans celebrating deepen Leo’s public humiliation. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s attempt to expel Bob culminates in the “never gone” breakdown. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo trying to blow up Bob only to destroy his own house is included in the final run of scenes. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob finding Leo by shouting his name in town is praised for its absurd efficiency. — Van Lathan
  • Bob and Siggy’s bedtime conversation and Tourette’s exchange gain force on adult rewatch. — Sean Fennessey
  • Dreyfuss’s “never gone” explosion and the dinner scene are the final personal favorites. — Sean Fennessey
Share this discussion More Most Rewatchable Scene answers
30:24

Picking Nits

Bob’s shifting symptoms, the Gutmans’ constant availability, Leo’s murder plan, and the length of Leo’s vacation; Bob...

Bob’s shifting symptoms, the Gutmans’ constant availability, Leo’s murder plan, and the length of Leo’s vacation; Bob’s apparent inconsistency is answered as gradual improvement through Baby Steps

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 00:30:24Read transcript
  • Bob’s OCD behavior seems to come and go: he cannot leave home or touch a doorknob, then suddenly socializes with the answering-service workers. — Bill Simmons
  • Anna’s immediate invitation of Bob is called a borderline nitpick and prompts debate about the character’s age and possible attraction. — Bill Simmons
  • The response is that pursuing Leo forces Bob into increasingly difficult interactions and therefore functions as treatment. — Van Lathan
  • Bob touching the family car without a napkin becomes evidence that his trust is growing. — Van Lathan
  • Bob’s impersonation and detective work show him re-entering the world rather than remaining static. — Van Lathan
  • The Gutmans appear across the lake whenever the story needs them despite supposedly running a diner. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s plan to blow Bob up offers no credible explanation for the death or evidence.
  • The panel accepts that Leo has lost his mind but still finds the attempted-murder mechanics excessive.
  • A participant’s only nitpick is that committed therapists would treat possible patient self-harm as a 911 emergency. — Van Lathan
  • The producer questions whether a psychiatrist would leave patients from July 31 through Labor Day.
  • A roughly thirty-five-day vacation is judged unusually long for an active practice.
Share this discussion More Picking Nits answers
37:05

What’s Aged the Best?

Leo’s reaction to Bob’s reported suicide, the spoken title, the Wagoneer, Julie Haggerty, Leo’s clothes, the local sh...

Leo’s reaction to Bob’s reported suicide, the spoken title, the Wagoneer, Julie Haggerty, Leo’s clothes, the local shirt, family conferences, the psychiatry satire, Bob’s humanity, and compact movie-star comedy

In the discussion (14)
Approx. transcript time · 00:37:05Read transcript
  • After hearing that his patient committed suicide, he calls it horrible and then says not to let it spoil the vacation. — Bill Simmons
  • The movie’s spoken “What about Bob?” title line remains a crowd-pleasing device. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s Wagoneer is praised as an important 1980s comedy vehicle.
  • Julie Haggerty is praised as a durable comic performer from Airplane! and Lost in America through Marriage Story.
  • The wife character is the family member who can tolerate and understand Leo. — Sean Fennessey
  • Albert Brooks and Gary Marshall’s casino negotiation in Lost in America is recalled as a favorite scene.
  • Dreyfuss’s vacation clothes are praised as perfectly chosen for the character. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob’s local shirt remains memorable. — Bill Simmons
  • The family conference and puppets efficiently reveal that Leo’s home life is less controlled than he believes.
  • The movie satirizes a period of branded celebrity psychiatry built around slogans and gimmicks. — Van Lathan
  • Bob connects with Leo’s children by listening and encouraging them, while Leo repeatedly fails to connect. — Van Lathan
  • The discussion argues that the film targets Leo’s fame-hungry narcissism more specifically than all therapy. — Van Lathan
  • Dreyfuss’s thighs and trimmed beard are nearly included as an Aged Best answer.
  • The panel misses compact high-concept American comedies built around major movie stars. — Sean Fennessey
Share this discussion More What’s Aged the Best? answers
45:20

What’s Aged the Worst?

Sympathy for Bob, Leo’s attempted murder, older comedy’s extreme violence, and period skepticism toward psychiatry (t...

Sympathy for Bob, Leo’s attempted murder, older comedy’s extreme violence, and period skepticism toward psychiatry (target disputed)

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:20Read transcript
  • A modern reading can see Bob as a sociopath who invades Leo’s family and helps drive him into a yearlong collapse. — Bill Simmons
  • The movie goes off the rails when Leo tries to murder Bob. — Van Lathan
  • The attempted murder is compared with older comedies that used kidnapping, threats, or mass violence as jokes. — Van Lathan
  • Bob is described as trying to reach the next day, while Leo is more interested in figuring people out than helping them. — Van Lathan
  • One reading says the movie treats psychiatrists as hucksters and punishes Leo for caring more about television fame than patients. — Sean Fennessey
  • The counterargument is that the script respects therapy but mocks a specific fame-hungry practitioner. — Sean Fennessey
  • The movie is placed in the period’s “from hell” lineage, where an unwanted person enters a transactional relationship and will not leave.
Share this discussion More What’s Aged the Worst? answers
49:03

Casting What-Ifs

Woody Allen was approached for Leo and possibly directing or rewriting; Patrick Stewart was also considered for Leo, ...

Woody Allen was approached for Leo and possibly directing or rewriting; Patrick Stewart was also considered for Leo, and Robin Williams was the first choice for Bob.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:03Read transcript
  • Woody Allen is reported to have been approached to play Leo and possibly direct or co-write.
  • The panel rejects Allen because his screen neurosis would unbalance the premise. — Bill Simmons
  • Patrick Stewart is reported as another Leo possibility, which the panel also doubts. — Sean Fennessey
  • Robin Williams is reported as the first choice for Bob before the production reached Bill Murray.
  • The panel says Williams was likely the bigger star in the late-1980s to early-1990s window. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More Casting What-Ifs answers
50:31

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

The unnamed actor who played Tommy Carcetti

The unnamed actor who played Tommy Carcetti

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:31Read transcript
  • The observed “Catherine Irb” is initially proposed before her long Criminal Intent run disqualifies her. — Bill Simmons
  • The telephone operators are considered but may be too brief to qualify. — Van Lathan
  • The performer known as Tony Soprano’s sister is recognized and rejected as too well known. — Van Lathan
  • The performer later known as Tommy Carcetti is the favored That Guy choice, but his name is not spoken in this transcript. — Van Lathan
  • Tom Aldredge as Mr. Gutman is recognized from The Sopranos.
  • Charlie Korsmo is debated because his child-star run made his name familiar to movie fans. — Van Lathan
Share this discussion More The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award answers
53:13

The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award

Richard Dreyfuss

Richard Dreyfuss

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:53:13Read transcript
  • Dreyfuss is the immediate choice because he really dials the performance up several times. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More The Ruffalo / Hanna / Rubinek / Partridge Overacting Award answers
53:28

The Teddy KGB Award for the Actor in a Completely Different Movie

No actor

No actor

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:53:28Read transcript
  • The panel initially reports no performer who seems to be in a completely different movie. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s sister appears without enough setup before marrying Bob, suggesting missing character material rather than a different acting mode. — Bill Simmons
  • Fran Brill’s casting is linked to her friendship with Frank Oz and long work as a Muppets puppeteer. — Sean Fennessey
Share this discussion More The Teddy KGB Award for the Actor in a Completely Different Movie answers
55:20

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

The two Gutman diner owners

The two Gutman diner owners

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:55:20Read transcript
  • The diner owners are named co-winners and praised for bringing heat in their brief scenes. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance answers
1:00:10

Half-Assed Internet Research

The miniature house explosion, a reported Spielberg Oscar campaign, Murray’s awards history, the Murray-Dreyfuss feud...

The miniature house explosion, a reported Spielberg Oscar campaign, Murray’s awards history, the Murray-Dreyfuss feud, the Virginia filming location, and Charlie Korsmo’s academic and legal career

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:10Read transcript
  • The explosion used a three-quarter-scale replica rather than destroying the expensive real house. — Bill Simmons
  • Steven Spielberg is reported to have spent his own money campaigning for a Bill Murray Oscar nomination. — Bill Simmons
  • The panel notes Murray has only one Oscar nomination despite his long importance to movies.
  • Sean Penn’s win over Murray’s Lost in Translation performance is criticized; the winning film title is unclear in the machine transcript. — Bill Simmons
  • Murray is reported to have acknowledged that aggravating Dreyfuss helped the movie. — Bill Simmons
  • Dreyfuss is reported to have called the experience unpleasant while still admitting Murray made him laugh. — Bill Simmons
  • A Dreyfuss account says Murray aggressively confronted him and threw a heavy glass ashtray. — Bill Simmons
  • The panel condemns physical harm but treats Murray’s verbal insult as darkly funny. — Bill Simmons
  • The vacation house was filmed at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia. — Bill Simmons
  • Charlie Korsmo is reported to have chosen What About Bob? instead of the Terminator 2 child role. — Bill Simmons
  • Korsmo later earned physics and law degrees, practiced law, taught corporate law, and received a federal board nomination.
  • The group calls Korsmo a legend in both acting and his later academic career. — Van Lathan
Share this discussion More Half-Assed Internet Research answers
1:07:27

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

The famous Fresh Prince of Bel-Air father-departure scene is accused of copying a basically similar Growing Pains sce...

The famous Fresh Prince of Bel-Air father-departure scene is accused of copying a basically similar Growing Pains scene in which young Leo reaches an emotional place.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:27Read transcript
  • A participant introduces this as one of his all-time hottest takes. — Sean Fennessey
  • The famous Fresh Prince scene with Will Smith, the observed Ben Vareen, and Uncle Phil is said to echo a basically similar Growing Pains episode in which young Leo reaches an emotional place. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award answers
1:08:21

Apex Mountain

Charlie Korsmo’s acting career and “death therapy”

Charlie Korsmo’s acting career and “death therapy”

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:21Read transcript
  • Bill Murray and Richard Dreyfuss receive explicit negative Apex verdicts. — Bill Simmons
  • Julie Haggerty also receives a negative Apex verdict. — Bill Simmons
  • Charlie Korsmo receives an acting-apex verdict even though his later academic career may be a larger achievement. — Bill Simmons
  • The movie’s “death therapy” concept is proposed as an apex. — Bill Simmons
  • Good Morning America receives a possible case based on the era’s cultural centrality of morning shows. — Van Lathan
  • Lake Winnipesaukee is proposed but left unresolved. — Sean Fennessey
  • Patient-therapist movies are compared, with Analyze This favored because it was a large hit and important to De Niro. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob being foisted onto Leo is proposed as a Foist Apex candidate. — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More Apex Mountain answers
1:13:14

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

No ten-episode Netflix version; an all-Black movie remake preferred

No ten-episode Netflix version; an all-Black movie remake preferred

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:13:14Read transcript
  • The proposed ten-episode version would use Sterling K. Brown and Tracy Morgan from the recasting discussion. — Bill Simmons
  • The panel says the story is fundamentally a compact movie and would be difficult to sustain for ten episodes. — Bill Simmons
  • In Treatment is cited as a television structure that can track multiple patients rather than stretch one doctor-patient joke. — Sean Fennessey
Share this discussion More Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake answers
1:14:05

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Is Leo an attempted murderer? Was Bob foisted on him? Why no sequel? What could a sequel without Leo be?

Is Leo an attempted murderer? Was Bob foisted on him? Why no sequel? What could a sequel without Leo be?

In the discussion (9)
Approx. transcript time · 01:14:05Read transcript
  • Leo’s effort to blow Bob up is judged attempted murder that should lead to jail. — Bill Simmons
  • Bob’s previous doctor transferring him to Leo is proposed as an all-time foist. — Bill Simmons
  • The absence of a sequel is attributed partly to the stars’ hostility.
  • The panel says a sequel still needs Dreyfuss because his performance is essential.
  • A conventional reversal sequel is compared with Analyze That and the observed “Meet the Fokkers.” — Van Lathan
  • One 2021 sequel pitch makes Bob a successful television self-help figure whose progress collapses after Leo dies. — Bill Simmons
  • A reported royalties dispute with Disney is raised as a practical reason Dreyfuss might not return. — Bill Simmons
  • Possible sequel titles include But Seriously…What About Bob? and What About Me? — Bill Simmons
  • The all-Black sequel is later given the title What About Van? — Bill Simmons
Share this discussion More Probably Unanswerable Questions answers
1:15:54

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

Bob’s local shirt, Leo’s puppets, the Wagoneer, and the Lake Winnipesaukee house

Bob’s local shirt, Leo’s puppets, the Wagoneer, and the Lake Winnipesaukee house

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:54Read transcript
  • The game-worn Bill Murray local shirt is one choice. — Bill Simmons
  • Leo’s therapy puppets are another choice. — Bill Simmons
  • The mentioned Waggonier is praised as a great car memorabilia choice. — Sean Fennessey
  • The lake house is the final aspiration and strongest lifestyle choice.
  • The panel imagines a shared timeshare and participation in the town’s local culture.
Share this discussion More What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie? answers
1:18:51

Who Won the Movie?

Bill Murray

Bill Murray

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:18:51Read transcript
Podcast choices
Speaker not identified
Bill Murray
Speaker not identified
Bill Murray
Speaker not identified
Bill Murray
Share this discussion More Who Won the Movie? answers
1:19:03

Producer review

Leo’s July 31-through-Labor-Day vacation seems too long for a psychiatrist with patients

Leo’s July 31-through-Labor-Day vacation seems too long for a psychiatrist with patients

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:03Read transcript
  • The producer introduces the vacation length as an omitted Picking Nits answer. — Bill Simmons
  • The period from July 31 through Labor Day is estimated at about thirty-five days.
  • The hosts agree that a month away from active patients seems unusually long.
Share this discussion More Producer review answers

More from the conversation

Bill Murray’s career is divided into star-comedy phases before and after Ghostbusters and a later character-actor phase around Rushmore.
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:46Read transcript
The discussion treats 1991 as a remarkably varied movie year led by established stars immediately before the Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler era.
Approx. transcript time · 00:12:19Read transcript
Therapist movies are compared through Good Will Hunting, Analyze This, Ordinary People, Prime, and Antwone Fisher.
Approx. transcript time · 00:15:57Read transcript
The film’s craft is credited to an unusually accomplished director, cinematographer, and editor working inside a broad comedy premise.
Approx. transcript time · 00:18:02Read transcript
Dreyfuss’s career is reframed as a gradual heel turn from audience surrogate to openly abrasive characters.
Approx. transcript time · 00:20:17Read transcript
Bob’s vulnerability and Leo’s narcissism force the audience to choose the difficult patient over the controlling doctor.
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:33Read transcript
The movie’s psychiatry argument is placed between older suspicion of “shrinks” and later stories in which therapy enables growth.
Approx. transcript time · 00:40:57Read transcript
The comedy is linked to a late-1980s/early-1990s “from hell” cycle in which an unwanted person invades an ordinary relationship.
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:20Read transcript
Murray’s lack of Oscar recognition is contrasted with the long-term importance of his film career.
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:24Read transcript
Charlie Korsmo’s short child-actor career is contrasted with later work in physics, law, and teaching.
Approx. transcript time · 01:04:53Read transcript
The closing lake-house discussion turns an idealized small-town vacation culture into a shared aspiration.
Approx. transcript time · 01:16:27Read transcript