People in Hollywood have known for a long time: if the first one works, there'll be a second, third, and fourth. And with each one, it gets harder to hold onto what made the original loved. Stiller, who 26 years ago stepped into Greg Focker's shoes, just admitted that himself.
But the third, "Little Fockers" (2010) — not the same. Same actors, but the magic somehow evaporated. The jokes feel forced, characters turned into caricatures of themselves. And Stiller doesn't deny that. Now, 15 years later, the fourth part is coming out. Greg's son is getting married this time. Ariana Grande in the cast — that's clearly a bid for a new audience. And Stiller, judging by his recent interviews, approaches the new film with humor. He even poked fun at De Niro, saying he's now roughly the same age De Niro was in the first movie.
For anyone writing scripts or producing, this story is a clear example of how not to do sequels. The first film worked because it was simple: guy meets his girlfriend's parents. The second expanded the universe without losing the characters. The third tried to cram too much in and lost focus. <a href=https://www.igor-scherbakov.ru/novosti-kino-i-serialov/ben-stiller-protiv-sikvelov-pochemu-on-ne-lyubit-little-fockers/><font color=black>Ben Stiller's Honesty: Actor vs His Own Franchise</font></a>
One more thought. The fourth one drops in November. Can it reverse the trend or will it just make things worse? Who knows. But the fact that Stiller openly says about the third film "we tried" — that alone is worth something. Because the most honest review usually comes from someone who was actually there.
