The film, which opened in North American theatres on Christmas, stars Crystal as a recently fired baseball announcer, who agrees to watch his three grandchildren with his wife (Bette Midler), while his daughter and her husband go on a business trip.
Crystal, 64, sat down with Reuters to talk about the film, being a grandparent and why he won鈥檛 host the Oscars ceremony again.
Q: You have not been on the big screen in a starring role since 2002鈥檚 Analyze That. Did you miss making movies?
A: 鈥淚 spent over four years doing my one-man Broadway show, 700 Sundays, and didn鈥檛 care about doing movies. I just so love being in front of live audiences. The play is more satisfying than anything. I鈥檓 not interrupted by planes flying overhead, waiting for them to light and all those gruesome slow things on a movie. But really, the last five years were spent getting this movie made.鈥�
Q: How did Parental Guidance become your return to film?
A: 鈥淲hen I wrote the first story for this movie, my wife Janice and I babysat for our daughter Jenny while she went away with her husband. We had six days with their girls, all alone. It was an eye-opener. When you鈥檙e not used to that energy, it鈥檚 tough. On the seventh day I rested and came in to the office and said, 鈥�;Here鈥檚 the idea for the movie.鈥櫬犫��
Q: What was eye-opening about those six days?
A: 鈥淭he eye-opener was the bible that we were given before they left town about what to say (to the kids), what to do, all the rules, don鈥檛 do this, don鈥檛 do that, this child has to be taken here. They have my respect of how they programmed their days and weeks. It鈥檚 insane what they have to do nowadays for schooling and parenting. It鈥檚 wild.鈥�
Q: Quite a difference between your childhood and the grandkids鈥� childhood, right?
A: 鈥淲hen I was a kid growing up, it was basically 鈥�;Go outside and play and I鈥檒l see you at dinner.鈥� There was no thought that there were bad people out there. There was such a carefree wonderful trust which forced you to use your imagination, which also bonded you with the best of you, and your friends. We didn鈥檛 have that 鈥�;inside鈥� thing like videogames. My only 鈥�;inside鈥� thing was watching the Yankees. Otherwise everything was outside.鈥�
Q: Speaking of the Yankees, your well-documented lifelong love of baseball is incorporated in to the film with your character being a ball-game announcer. That must have been fun to do.
A: 鈥淚 love the game and I thought it was a really interesting occupation we hadn鈥檛 seen before. And a good one for me to play because I love it. I wanted my character to have something he loved doing where I didn鈥檛 have to fake it.鈥�
Q: In being absent from the silver screen for a while, did you find that the movie-making business has changed much?
A: 鈥淭he studios are so concerned with quadrants (capturing four major demographic groups of moviegoers 鈥� men, woman and those over and under 25). I鈥檇 never heard of these things. 鈥� Now it鈥檚 a whole different ball game. They鈥檙e so worried: 鈥�;Who鈥檚 going to come?鈥� Well, there鈥檚 77 million American who are baby boomers. That鈥檚 a huge audience who wants to laugh and have a story told that doesn鈥檛 have bombs and spies and killing.鈥�
Q: Does Parental Guidance reflect where are you now at this stage of your life?
A: 鈥淚 was fortunate to be in a great romantic comedy about falling in love (1989鈥檚 When Harry Met Sally). I wrote the original story for my turning 40, City Slickers (in 1991), which became a huge hit and a very liked movie. And now Parental Guidance happened at this point in my life. I relate to it as a parent and a grandparent.鈥�
Q: You will be a grandfather for the fourth time in March. What do you like best about that role?
A: 鈥淚t鈥檚 so hard to understand how you can love someone so much that鈥檚 not yours, but extensions of you. I鈥檓 going to turn 65 on March 14. My wife鈥檚 birthday is the 16th. The baby鈥檚 due the 18th. That would be the greatest present of all 鈥� a healthy new baby.鈥�
Q: Last year you hosted the Oscar ceremony for the ninth time, making you the second most-used host after the late Bob Hope. Are you gunning for his title?
A: 鈥淚鈥檓 not even close. I鈥檝e done 9, he鈥檚 done 19 and neither one of us are doing it again.鈥�
