How many times can Gaylord “Greg” Focker (Ben Stiller) turn an uncomfortable moment into a full-blown disaster? Judging by the latest chapter in the “Meet the Parents” franchise, the answer is apparently one more time. The fourth film, “Focker-in-Law,” shifts the spotlight to Greg’s son, Henry (Skyler Gisondo), who brings his partner, Olivia (Ariana Grande-Butera), home to meet the family. Olivia is a former FBI hostage negotiator, while Greg is once again determined to say the wrong thing at exactly the wrong moment. For a refresher on his earlier misadventures, watch Looper’s video above.
In 2000’s “Meet the Parents,” Greg is dating Pam (Teri Polo) when the couple travels to Long Island to meet her parents, Dina (Blythe Danner) and Jack (Robert De Niro), a former CIA operative and Vietnam War veteran. Jack immediately takes a dislike to Greg, who does little to win him over. Greg accidentally starts a fire in the house, knocks over the urn holding Jack’s mother’s ashes, and misplaces Jack’s beloved cat, Mr. Jinx. Those catastrophes, along with everything else that goes wrong, helped make “Meet the Parents” one of the defining cringe comedies of its era.
Greg also encounters Kevin (Owen Wilson), a wealthy stock investor who was once engaged to Pam. Jack clearly prefers Kevin, adding another layer of tension to Greg’s already difficult visit. By the end of the film, however, Jack accepts Greg as part of the family. Pam’s siblings, Debbie (Nicole DeHuff) and Denny (Jon Abrahams), also appear in the first movie but have not returned since. With Greg and Jack finally on better terms, it might seem as though their rivalry would be over. Anyone familiar with this franchise knows better.
Greg and Jack have endured plenty before Focker-in-Law
The 2004 sequel, “Meet the Fockers,” brings Greg and Pam’s families together for the first time. Jack and Dina meet Greg’s mother, sex therapist Roz (Barbra Streisand), and his easygoing attorney father, Bernie (Dustin Hoffman). Their sharply different personalities provide much of the film’s comedy, although Roz and Bernie are not expected to make surprise appearances in “Focker-in-Law.” Streisand, in particular, has been vocal about pay disparities between male and female performers in Hollywood.
Then came 2010’s “Little Fockers.” By that point, Greg and Pam had been married for a decade and were raising two children, Henry and Samantha. In “Focker-in-Law,” the characters will appear as young adults, played by Skyler Gisondo and Beanie Feldstein. The earlier film sees Jack suffer a mild heart attack and begin preparing Greg to take on the role of family patriarch. His suspicions soon grow when he thinks Greg is having an affair with pharmaceutical representative Andi Garcia (Jessica Alba), though the entire situation turns out to be a misunderstanding.
That history sets the stage for “Focker-in-Law,” where Greg becomes the parent who distrusts his child’s partner. His concerns appear to stem partly from the belief that Olivia could use her FBI training to take Henry away from him. He is also hurt that Jack wants to welcome Olivia into the Circle of Trust, the exclusive group Jack guards so closely. Greg did not earn a place in that circle until “Little Fockers,” after a decade of marriage to Jack’s daughter, making the latest slight feel especially personal.
Historically, each “Meet the Parents” sequel has been viewed as weaker than the one before it. “Focker-in-Law” has a chance to break that pattern. To catch every callback and inside joke, watch Looper’s recap of the Focker family and their previous films above.