Exclusive: PJ Hogan is out, and Rob Reiner is in. Reiner is now the director of “And So It Goes,” starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton. For Douglas, the story is a little true-to-life: the character’s son goes to jail. The twist is that he leaves Michael and Diane with a black granddaughter they didn’t know about. Reiner’s Castle Rock was always the producer, but Hogan was long attached to direct the comedy.
It’s a toss up to say which of them, Reiner or Hogan, has had a recent hit. Each of them has been stale for some time. Hogan’s hits were in the 90s–“My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Muriel’s Weddding.” Reiner sued to be Mr. Smart and Funny. Think of “Spinal Tap,” “Stand by Me,” etc. Somewhere in the late 90s he lost it completely. He’s produced a string of awful films starting with “The Ghosts of Mississippi” and “The Story of Us.” His last two films, “Magic of Belle Isle”and “Flipped” were barely released and made no money at all– $102,000 and $1.7 million respectively. And the first one starred Morgan Freeman.
“And So it Goes” reunites Reiner with Douglas. They made a great movie together with “The American President” twenty years ago. Here’s hoping lightning strikes twice.
