A week to call Robert De Niro 'Bob'? Skyler Gisondo explains.
Skyler Gisondo breaks down the week-long holdout before calling Robert De Niro “Bob” while filming Focker-In-Law—and why he waited might surprise you.
Skyler Gisondo says he actually scheduled the moment he’d stop calling Robert De Niro “Mr. De Niro” and start going with “Bob.” While shooting Focker-In-Law, he waited until a Friday to try it — on purpose — figuring a weekend buffer might soften any awkwardness if it landed wrong.
Sharing the story on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Gisondo admitted he spent days keeping it formal around the two-time Oscar winner.
“The first week of filming went by like Monday, Tuesday, and I am saying, ‘Good morning, Mr. De Niro,’”
Over those first few days, he picked up that De Niro seemed to prefer a looser vibe on set, even if the legend never told him to drop the “Mr.” That’s when Gisondo drew up a small plan.
“I was nervous to call him Bob, so I made a game plan,”
He chose Friday, waited until wrap, and went for it.
“All right, bye. Thank you for a great week, man,”
Gisondo said he clocked a subtle reaction that made him think De Niro appreciated the switch.
The Fockers are back
Focker-In-Law is positioned as the fourth movie in the Meet the Parents franchise, reuniting Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller as Jack Byrnes and Greg Focker. Gisondo joins the chaos as Greg’s son, adding a new generation to the long-running Byrnes–Focker family standoff.
- Robert De Niro — Jack Byrnes
- Ben Stiller — Greg Focker
- Skyler Gisondo — Greg’s son
Plotwise, the film leans into multi-generational family friction: younger relatives with modern views banging up against Jack’s old-school expectations, plus the franchise staples — Jack’s surveillance streak, Greg’s best-intentions-gone-wrong, and social blowups that spiral from awkward to catastrophic. Wedding prep and complicated family get-togethers provide the setup for the new round of disasters.