Last month Movie Buzzers was invited to attend the press conference for the upcoming Luc Besson comedy The Family featuring the stars of the film: John D’Leo, Dianna Agron, Michelle Pfeiffer, and, of course, Robert De Niro. The group was all smiles and seemed to have a lot of energy despite the fact that they were doing one-on-one interviews all day. De Niro was obviously the center of attention and he seemed in good spirits, albeit a bit reserved. In fact, Pfeiffer (who, by the way, is just as beautiful as she was in Batman Returns) seemed to do most of the talking.
Unfortunately, photos were not allowed (nor were any photos taken for us to use), so the only evidence I have to prove it actually happened is the audio clip below. Some highlights to listen for:
– De Niro’s numerous quips, including his remark about retiring from acting: “What else am I going to do?” When another member of the press pointed out to De Niro that he previously had made “one successful” crime comedy before, De Niro was surprised “Which one?” he asked, clearly thinking he made more than one (the member of the press indicated it was Analyze This. I would’ve went with Mad Dog and Glory, personally, but I guess that depends on your definition of “success.”)
– Pfeiffer and De Niro talking about what is was like to finally be in a film together after both starring in Stardust and New Year’s Eve, though without sharing any screentime. Pfeiffer actually pointed out that she only ran into De Niro on those films at the premieres.
-Pfeiffer revealing that John D’Leo was her vocal coach (he taught her to speak “Jersey”).
-De Niro struggles to field an odd question about whether he and Martin Scorsese (who is an executive producer of The Family) are “family” themselves. A simple “sure” pretty much answers the question.
-Me wishing De Niro a happy birthday (he turned 70 a week before the press conference), followed by me asking Agron what is was like to play a character who starts off so physically tough but is revealed to be emotionally fragile.
-Pfeiffer and De Niro both remarking that they wished they had more love scenes.
Warning: There’s a pretty big spoiler about a really funny scene involving De Niro’s character going down memory lane by revisiting one of De Niro’s most iconic films. It doesn’t ruin the movie or the scene, but it ruins the joke — which is probably the best joke in the entire movie.
The Family will be released in theaters on September 13 and we’ll have a review of it up that morning. Check out the audio from the press conference below:
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