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Meet the Parents
Meet the Parents
Meet the Parents
Meet the Parents
Silver Linings Playbook
Silver Linings Playbook
Film credit
Robert De Niro
Also referred to as De Niro, DeNiro, Denaro, De N'Or, Bob
Stats
- Episodes featuring their films
- 16
- Movies in this archive
- 23
Rewatchables episodes featuring Robert De Niro’s films
A Bronx Tale
1993 film
Bill Simmons · Chris Ryan · Sean Fennessey · Van Lathan
Aired September 19, 2023
Displaying episodes 1 - 12 of 16 in total
Mentioned in discussions
Who Won the Movie?
Robert De Niro; Stiller choice in ambiguous exchange
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:47:30Read transcript
- De Niro is the main choice; Owen Wilson is considered for scene stealing but set aside.
- A brief Stiller choice appears in the undiarized exchange; the following words are garbled, so a unanimous outcome cannot be established. — Craig Horlbeck
Podcast choices
- Speaker not identified
- Robert De Niro
Just One Oscar
Robert De Niro; Best Comedy award proposed
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:41:59Read transcript
- Robert De Niro is selected, with a proposed Best Comedy Oscar for the film itself. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (13)
Approx. transcript time · 01:29:02Read transcript
- Stiller is placed in an Apex period between this film and Zoolander. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro is rejected. — Bill Simmons
- Nicorette gum is affirmed because it is prominently used and named. — Bill Simmons
- In-law films remain a two-film final between this and The In-Laws. — Bill Simmons
- Teri Polo is a definite yes. — Bill Simmons
- Septic-tank disasters are affirmed, distinguished from ordinary clogged-toilet jokes. — Kyle Brandt
- Lil’ Kim posters are affirmed. — Bill Simmons
- Smoking male nurses and the $24.99 strap-on are affirmed. — Bill Simmons
- Kitty litter is near the top, qualified by the memorable material actually being ashes. — Bill Simmons
- Atlantic American Airlines is floated jokingly without a settled answer. — Bill Simmons
- Subtle lacrosse-camp jokes are an emphatic yes. — Bill Simmons
- Lie detectors receive a strong case through the poster and central scene, challenged by Basic Instinct. — Kyle Brandt
- Cats in films, expanded jokingly to cats overall, receive enthusiastic support for performance and narrative importance. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:09Read transcript
- James Rebhorn is favored after an exceptional run of supporting appearances; familiar viewers may know his name, but the general audience likely does not. — Bill Simmons
- Tom McCarthy as Dr. Bob is the alternative, with his later directing career making the acting role surprising. — Bill Simmons
The most GIFable moment
De Niro’s grace triple-take; watching-you gesture
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:50:39Read transcript
- De Niro’s triple-take during grace is preferred, with the watching-you finger gesture as an alternative. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:49:22Read transcript
- Stiller’s brief attempt at smoking is nominated: the hand movement imitates De Niro, but failing to inhale betrays his inexperience. — Bill Simmons
Half-Assed Internet Research
Original indie film; box office and video; Oscar song; home movies; smoking; De Niro role choice; polygraph; DeHuff; cats; Focker name; set behavior; ratings rule; Litter Kwitter; Polo bankruptcy
In the discussion (18)
Approx. transcript time · 00:24:56Read transcript
- The film originated with a low-budget 1992 version by Greg Glienna; Universal’s rights purchase reportedly allowed it to suppress that earlier film, which intermittently reappears online. — Bill Simmons
- Randy Newman’s A Fool in Love received an Original Song Oscar nomination. — Bill Simmons
- A $55 million budget and roughly $330 million gross are reported; it beat Remember the Titans on opening weekend. — Bill Simmons
- The film is reported as the seventh-biggest release of 2000; the sequels earned $522.7 million and $310.7 million respectively. — Bill Simmons
- Video sales reportedly added $200 million in 2001, illustrating the lucrative home-video era. — Bill Simmons
- Polo’s husband’s home movies were reportedly inserted after test audiences disliked Pam, making her more appealing as a romantic partner. — Bill Simmons
- Stiller reportedly was not a smoker and felt uncomfortable smoking beside De Niro, whose screen technique he admired. — Bill Simmons
- Claims that the bomb dialogue was removed from airplane screenings conflict with a recent personal flight viewing that retained it. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro reportedly turned down Any Given Sunday to make this film. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro reportedly suggested the polygraph scene. — Bill Simmons
- Nicole DeHuff, who played Pam’s sister, died at 30 after pneumonia; the diagnosis and sequel timing are discussed with uncertainty. — Bill Simmons
- Two Himalayan cats, Bailey and Misha, played Jinx, with Misha doing most scenes. — Bill Simmons
- Jim Carrey reportedly devised the Focker surname. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro reportedly enjoyed the cat between takes and encouraged more scenes with it. — Bill Simmons
- De Niro reportedly kept his distance from Stiller to sustain their characters’ unease; Stiller later acknowledged he was not especially nice. — Kyle Brandt
- The ratings body reportedly required proof of a real Focker surname before permitting it. — Bill Simmons
- The movie reportedly inspired the successful Litter Kwitter cat toilet-training product. — Bill Simmons
- Polo’s 2014 bankruptcy filing is mentioned without an explanation. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:21:41Read transcript
- Mike Myers is initially said to have been offered the role; later discussion explicitly qualifies the conflicting reports. — Bill Simmons
- Steven Soderbergh reportedly tried to develop the remake before leaving for Out of Sight. — Bill Simmons
- Spielberg reportedly considered directing and producing with Jim Carrey and possibly Al Pacino. — Bill Simmons
- Carrey remained involved after Spielberg departed and contributed ideas before leaving; reports of a Mike Myers offer are explicitly uncertain. — Bill Simmons
- Stiller is judged better for awkward dinner-table humor than the more physical version imagined for Carrey. — Kyle Brandt
- Naomi Watts reportedly initially had Pam’s role and said producers replaced her because they did not find her sexy enough; that explanation is met with disbelief. — Bill Simmons
- Christopher Walken reportedly was the backup if De Niro declined, inviting a Wedding Crashers comparison. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:30:20Read transcript
- Gene Hackman reportedly partnered to adapt the novel and considered directing and playing Lecter or Crawford before withdrawing. — Bill Simmons
- Paul Verhoeven reportedly turned the film down and later expressed regret. — Bill Simmons
- Jonathan Demme reportedly wanted Sean Connery for Lecter, but Connery declined. — Bill Simmons
- Michelle Pfeiffer declined Clarice; the panel prefers Foster because Pfeiffer’s overt glamour would shift the character’s closed, professional center. — Bill Simmons
- Meg Ryan reportedly rejected the material as too gruesome, and Molly Ringwald auditioned but was considered too young. — Bill Simmons
- Ed Harris reportedly declined Jack Crawford because the role was not interesting enough. — Bill Simmons
- Reported Lecter possibilities include Daniel Day-Lewis, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Derek Jacobi, and Forest Whitaker; the panel openly doubts some unsourced casting lists while noting Whitaker publicly discussed auditioning. — Chris Ryan
Half-Assed Internet Research
Adaptation drafts; box office and Oscars; parents’ backstory; corrected scores; novel differences
In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:20:58Read transcript
- The adaptation began with Matthew Quick’s 2008 novel and went through numerous script drafts and casting permutations. — Chris Ryan
- The discussion recalls over $200 million worldwide on roughly a $20 million budget, its Toronto audience award and the gradual theatrical rollout as an increasingly unusual route to success.
- The film received the major picture, directing, lead-acting and screenplay nominations plus supporting nominations for De Niro and Weaver; Lawrence was its sole Oscar winner. — Chris Ryan
- Weaver reportedly helped develop the parents’ active romantic backstory and corrected the dance-score arithmetic so the average actually reached five. — Chris Ryan
- The novel is said to give Pat more severe problems, a longer institutional stay and a different Eagles season, tentatively identified as 2006.
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:31:48Read transcript
- De Niro wins overacting for his explosive reactions; the film’s heightened style and unsubtle parallels between father and son complicate the choice, while his stadium exclusion is praised as a detail. — Andy Greenwald
The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award
Garbage bag; Weaver casting; De Niro nomination; Randy; Tiffany’s manipulation; accents
In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:28Read transcript
- The garbage bag is disliked as another embarrassing Philadelphia image and its usefulness is questioned; a pickle-juice alternative is joked about.
- Jacki Weaver is called good in the role but questionable casting because the mother could have supplied a convincing Philadelphia accent; Melissa Leo is proposed instead. — Andy Greenwald
- De Niro’s Oscar nomination and comeback narrative are questioned even while his performance and renewed engagement are appreciated. — Zach Baron
- Randy’s behavior is considered implausibly tolerated: a Cowboys fan flirting with Pat Senior’s wife and threatening the family’s livelihood would face confrontation. — Chris Ryan
- Tiffany is provocatively compared to the Joker for manipulating Pat through the forged letter and promise of his estranged wife’s presence.
- The characters feel psychologically Philadelphian without sounding local; avoiding accents has defenders, while a genuinely local actress is imagined and Nikki’s actor is identified as being from Philadelphia.
Displaying discussions 1 - 12 of 113 in total
Films in the archive
Raging Bull
1980
Ronin
1998
Silver Linings Playbook
2012
Taxi Driver
1976
The Deer Hunter
1978
The Godfather Part II
1974
The Intern
2015
The Irishman
2019
The King of Comedy
1982
The Untouchables
1987
This Boy's Life
1993