In this sequel to the $166 million–grossing Meet the Parents, Hoffman and Streisand (in her first role since 1996’s The Mirror Has Two Faces) are the in-laws–to–be, a Florida couple who, unlike the staid Byrneses, are “a little off-center, crazy, and funky,” says Polo, who returns as Focker’s fiancée. Hoffman’s Bernie is a retired legal-aid lawyer who “has no respect for boundaries, is always too close to Jack [De Niro] and eating off his plate without asking,” says director Roach, who is also returning. Streisand’s Roz is a couples’ therapist specializing in seniors’ sexuality. (To her son’s horror, she tries to spice up the Byrneses’ love life.) Also on hand are Jinx the cat, Jack’s intimidating catchphrase (“I’m watching you . . . ”), and, of course, that unfortunate surname. “The MPAA wasn’t going to let them call it Meet the Fockers unless they found someone who had the last name,” says Polo. “And damned if they didn’t find one family—in Canada—with that name, spelled that way.”
BOSOM BUDDIES: On their first day working together, Streisand presented Polo with the kind of titillating gift her character might offer: a white-chocolate lollipop shaped like a breast.
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