Ben Stiller's journey in the film industry has seen him face numerous challenges when it comes to obtaining appropriate ratings for his movies. In this article, we'll explore how he had to jump through hoops to ensure that films like "Meet the Fockers" and "Zoolander" maintained a PG-13 rating.

Unraveling Ben Stiller's Rating Battles in Hollywood

Meet the Fockers: The Rating Dilemma

During his appearance on "Hot Ones" on December 5th, Ben Stiller revealed that he had to give the Motion Picture Association unique documentation before they would allow the 2004 comedy sequel "Meet the Fockers" to maintain a PG-13 rating. The host, Sean Evans, asked if the association wouldn't allow the name "Focker" unless they could prove there was someone with that surname. Stiller confirmed that this was true, stating that it was because the film was originally rated PG-13 and they thought the name was too close to a certain expletive. There was an entire legal process that required evidence proving "Focker" was a real surname. Stiller recalled that he didn't fully understand how the legal process worked but that something like this did happen. A sequel to "Meet the Parents", "Meet the Fockers" followed Stiller's character's in-laws (played by Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner) meeting his parents (Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand) for the first time. A third film, "Little Fockers", came out in 2010.

Zoolander and the Rating Struggle

Stiller also shared that he experienced a similar problem during the production of "Zoolander". The Motion Picture Association was reluctant to give the movie a PG-13 rating due to its raunchier scenes. He had to go to speak to the arbitration board when they wanted to give it an R rating. The "goat orgy thing" was something they didn't care for or didn't think was wholesome enough. Stiller wrote a little speech and had to go through the entire process. He emphasized that it was nerve-racking as it was so important to him and the movie. When you have a comedy with jokes that you know work, the last thing you want to do is cut them for a rating.

Reflections on Meet the Parents

Back in 2020, Stiller reflected on the 20th anniversary of "Meet the Parents" release. He recalled how terrified he was to work with Robert De Niro for the first time. On the first day of shooting together, when they met at the doorstep and Stiller made a comment about the house, De Niro reacted and Stiller cracked up in his face. He then started sweating, fearing he had broken character on the first scene. But then De Niro smiled and Stiller felt okay. From then on, he never felt more comfortable.Stiller's newest film "Nutcrackers" is now available on Hulu.