14 DAY TRIAL // In November last year, word got out that Dustin Hoffman had pulled out of the third installment in the “Fockers” franchise because of conflicting schedules. As it turns out, he came back – for a whopping $7.5 million.
The National Enquirer (story via here) has learned that, by the time shooting for “Little Fockers” wrapped, producers realized something was missing, and that was Hoffman’s character.
The film was produced by Robert De Niro’s Tribeca Films. Since De Niro is also in it, his say eventually carried the most weight at the end of shooting, when it came to reconsider the initial decision of not having Hoffman on board.
“Dustin Hoffman will earn a staggering $7.5 million to reprise his ‘Meet the Fockers’ role - for just five days of work!” the Enquirer writes.
“Dustin was not included in the original filming because he demanded such a high fee, but after the movie wrapped, studio execs - and notably co-star Ben Stiller - weren’t happy that Dustin had been left out,” the tab writes, citing well-placed industry sources.
Once shooting was done, a huge decision had to be made, namely whether Hoffman would be a wise investment, even if he was asking for so much money.
As it turns out, it was decided he was worth the risk.
“In late August, the source says, it was decided that having the superstar in the project was more important than saving a few million dollars, and Dustin was brought in to shoot for five days,” says the Enquirer.
That means Dustin Hoffman will pocket $1.5 million for a day’s work, something De Niro himself approved of.
“Even though he and Dustin have been friends for many years, it was not an easy decision. That’s a lot of money, and there were a lot of people who thought the movie was just fine without Dustin,” an inside source says for the tab about the decision to have Hoffman back.
Of course, in the long run, it will probably turn out that such a huge paycheck was a wise investment: the previous two films made over $840 million together at the international box office and “Little Fockers” drops on December 22, precisely before holiday season.
Since the trailer for it indicated it will be quite a fun family movie, “Little Fockers” is bound to make a killing at the box office, word has it.