HOLIDAY MOVIEGOERS MAKE MERRY FOR UNIVERSAL, WITH 'MEET THE FOCKERS' AND 'IN GOOD COMPANY' RINGING IN 2005

HOLIDAY MOVIEGOERS MAKE MERRY FOR UNIVERSAL, WITH 'MEET THE FOCKERS' AND 'IN GOOD COMPANY' RINGING IN 2005 Star-Studded 'FOCKERS' Sets Two Additional Records While Paul Weitz Comedy Bows With Impressive Per-Theater Average UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., Jan. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Universal Pictures'/DreamWorks Pictures' "Meet the Fockers" -- the sequel to 2000's runaway comedy hit "Meet the Parents" -- continued its dominance at the domestic box office over the New Years holiday weekend and set two new records in the process. In its second week of release, "Meet the Fockers" earned a vigorous three-day weekend total of $41,741,785 at 3,524 playdates for a $11,845 per theater average. This past weekend's performance has now set two new benchmarks for the film: largest New Years Eve gross of $12,140,181 and largest New Years day gross of $18,271,940. The second weekend figures represent a low 9% drop off from the previous Christmas weekend, when the film broke records for both biggest Christmas day and largest day after Christmas. The film's striking cumulative to date stands at $162,461,370. In its limited release of three playdates, Paul Weitz's well-reviewed comedy "In Good Company" earned an eye-popping per theater average of $50,583 over the weekend, with a total figure of $151,750. To date, the film -- which stands poised to expand to more than 1,600 playdates on January 14 -- has earned a cumulative figure of $225,031. Said Nikki Rocco, president, distribution, Universal Pictures, "Throughout this holiday season it's clear to us that families wanted to escape to the movies to laugh and feel good, and 'Meet the Fockers' and 'In Good Company' give audiences opportunities to do both. 'Fockers' continued its blockbuster performance, holding great mid-week and accounting for nearly one-third of all business done over the New Years weekend. Only a 9% drop is just terrific. The opening grosses for 'In Good Company' bode well for our planned wide expansion on January 14." Four years ago, audiences were invited to come along with male nurse Greg (a.k.a. Gaylord) Focker (Ben Stiller) on a weekend as he lost his luggage, set the backyard on fire, went a little over-the-top in a game of water volleyball, spray painted the cat and was administered a lie-detector test by Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro), his girlfriend's father (who turned out to be not a horticulturalist, but an ex-CIA operative reluctant to allow Greg into The Byrnes Family Circle of Trust) in the blockbuster comedy "Meet the Parents." The film became the runaway hit of the fall of 2000, tallying more than $300 million worldwide. Now, Greg has managed to earn his way inside the Circle of Trust and things are going great. He and his fiancee Pam (Teri Polo) are excitedly planning their wedding and there's only one tiny, itsy-bitsy little thing left to smooth the way to the altar: the future in-laws need to spend a weekend together. So, Greg and Pam climb aboard Jack's new state-of-the-art RV for a trip to Focker Isle, the Cocoanut Grove domicile of Bernie and Roz Focker (Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand). The next 48 hours will provide the parents of the intended bride and groom a little time to get to know each other, but more importantly, give Jack the opportunity to study Greg's parents. Things start off well enough, but that's before Jack discovers that the lawyer and doctor Greg presented are, in fact, a liberal stay-at-home dad and a senior citizens' sex therapist. Then there's the RV toilet episode, the overly zealous game of touch football, the saucy Cuban caterer with the secret, the incident with the toddler and the glue ... From the co-director and Academy Award(R)-nominated co-screenwriter of "About a Boy," Paul Weitz, comes the insightful and human comedy "In Good Company." Dan Foreman (Dennis Quaid) is 51 and his life is good ... on the whole. The long-term head of ad sales at the weekly Sports America has just celebrated the magazine's biggest year, thanks in large part to Dan's warm, honest, handshake deal style and the departmental esprit de corps he fosters. Even the news of his wife's unexpected pregnancy and the acceptance of his eldest daughter, Alex (Scarlett Johansson), into NYU leave Dan happy, though not entirely unconcerned about family finances -- but he will, as he always has, manage. Carter Duryea (Topher Grace) is 26 and thinks his life is awesome, mostly. The whiz kid has been devoting himself single-mindedly to getting ahead at the multi-national conglomerate Globecom. Management even knows his name -- Carter is being "groomed" for his next rung on the corporate ladder: heading up ad sales at one of the cornerstone publications newly acquired by Globecom in their latest takeover, the magazine Sports America. Unfortunately for Carter, his promotion coincides with the crumbling of his seven-month marriage and he has no one, save a pet fish, to share his joy with. But he knows he's on his way, he's going places -- and he'll manage. Dan's exasperation at his demotion is nothing compared to his incredulity at being replaced by the 26-year-old Carter. But in light of the new developments at home, he needs his job as much as Carter needs his. Forging a tenuous relationship out of corporate necessity, the two begin working together to meet Globecom's mandate of cutting the department's budget while increasing revenue by 35 percent ... until Alex and Carter begin an affair, which they hide from Dan. The corporate handbook has precious little to say about sleeping with your employee's collegiate daughter and if word were ever to get out, news of their affair would seriously threaten Carter's detente with Dan, Alex's close relationship with her father and the progress the two salesmen have made at Sports America. All in all, life for both Dan and Carter just got a bit more complicated. Universal Pictures and DreamWorks Pictures Present A Tribeca/Everyman Pictures Production of A Jay Roach Film: Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand in "Meet the Fockers," starring Blythe Danner, Teri Polo. The music is by Randy Newman. The costume designer is Carol Ramsey. The co-producer is Jon Poll. The film is edited by Jon Poll and Lee Haxall. The production designer is Rusty Smith; the director of photography is John Schwartzman, A.S.C. The executive producers are Nancy Tenenbaum and Amy Sayres. It is based on characters created by Greg Glienna & Mary Ruth Clarke. The film is produced by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Jay Roach. The story is by Jim Herzfeld and Marc Hyman, with a screenplay by Jim Herzfeld and John Hamburg. "Meet the Fockers" is directed by Jay Roach. (C) 2004 Universal Studios and DreamWorks LLC www.meetthefockers.com Universal Pictures Presents A Depth of Field Production of A Paul Weitz Film: Dennis Quaid, Scarlett Johansson, Topher Grace in "In Good Company," starring Marg Helgenberger, David Paymer, Philip Baker Hall. The original score is by Stephen Trask. The costume designer is Molly Maginnis. The co-producer is Kerry Kohansky. The editor is Myron Kerstein; the production designer is William Arnold; the director of photography is Remi Adefarasin, B.S.C. The executive producers are Rodney Liber and Andrew Miano. "In Good Company" is produced by Paul Weitz and Chris Weitz. It is written and directed by Paul Weitz. (C) 2004 Universal Studios. www.ingoodcompanymovie.com Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is part of NBC Universal. NBC Universal is one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates the No. 1 television network, the fastest-growing Spanish-language network, a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80%-owned by General Electric, with 20% controlled by Vivendi Universal. Source: Universal Pictures CONTACT: Paul Pflug of Universal Pictures, +1-818-777-0020 Web site: http://www.universalstudios.com/ http://www.ingoodcompanymovie.com/ http://www.meetthefockers.com/ ------- Profile: International Entertainment