The Rewatchables: ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan

Published 2021-05-04; 1:22:43 by the feed.

As extracted (engineer-sonnet-2026-10-13)

The extraction calls the show “The Rewatchables (The Ringer)” and the episode “What About Bob? with Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan”.

Hosts: Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey. Guests: Van Lathan.

Subject films: What About Bob? (1991).

On the transcript: No speaker labels; ad reads (Blue Moon) skipped. Several lines from movie clips are interleaved with discussion, and some timestamps and names are garbled.

Awards and segments (65)

Most rewatchable scene

floated The opening credits, which establish how nuts Bob is right away
“Um, I really like the opening credits.”
Bill Simmons · 0:27:19
pick The first therapy session with Murray and Dreyfuss (what if my heart stops beating)
“I have the 1st therapy scene.”
Bill Simmons · 0:27:29
pick Bob waiting at the diner for the doctor to call, and the Gutmans who own the diner
“Next rewatchable scene when he's, when Bob's waiting for the doctor to call in the diner, the guy uses the phone.”
Bill Simmons · 0:29:05
pick Bob sailing with the family
“To me, this is when, right here is when the movie takes off.”
Bill Simmons · 0:31:59
pick Dr. Marvin breaking out the puppets to talk to his daughter
“I also love when Dreyfus is talking where they're after and he breaks out the fucking puppets and it's like, oh, you're a lunatic.”
Bill Simmons · 0:31:13
pick Bob teaches Siggy how to dive and Siggy pushes Murray into the lake
“Now, the next rewatchable scene, he teaches Siggy how to dive.”
Bill Simmons · 0:32:01
pick Bob at dinner (the hand shucked corn)
“Um, Bob at dinner.”
Bill Simmons · 0:32:13
pick Bob saves Travis from choking and they all gravitate to him
“And then when he saves them, they all gravitate to Bob.”
Bill Simmons · 0:32:56
pick The GMA interview crash and the diner people celebrating
“Bob crashed in the GMA interview, the GMA interview, the whole thing, the diner people celebrating.”
Bill Simmons · 0:33:09
pick Dreyfuss kicking Bob out (he's never gone)
“Um, the Dreyfus kicking him out.”
Bill Simmons · 0:33:15
pick Leo tries to blow up Bob and Bob's house pulls up
“And then, uh, Leo tries to blow up Bob, but Bob's house pulls up.”
Bill Simmons · 0:33:21
pick The chicken (dinner) scene
“The chicken scene is my favorite scene.”
unknown · 0:33:27
pick Bob gets off the bus and finds Leo by screaming his name in the middle of town
“I do love it also, when he gets off the bus and his idea of tracking down Leo is just to stand in the middle of town and scream, Dr. Leo Marvin, and it works.”
unknown · 0:33:28
pick The Bob and Siggy diving scene, and every Bob and Siggy scene including the bed conversation
“I really, I like that scene a lot more watching it the 2nd time around, but I feel like every scene between Bob and Siggy is really good”
Sean Fennessey · 0:34:47
pick Siggy in bed with Bob, shot like a horror scene
“But my favorite scene is scaring the shit out of me.”
Sean Fennessey · 0:34:59
pick Dreyfuss blowing his top: he's never gone, then opening the door
“My favorite scene is definitely Dreyfuss just blowing his top and doing the he's not gone.”
unknown · 0:35:23
pick The dinner, Bob being annoying
“I have the dinner.”
unknown · 0:35:32

Roger Ebert review · Bill reads what Roger Ebert (and Gene Siskel) thought of the film.

pick What About Bob?: Ebert gave it 3 stars and called it Murray's best since Ghostbusters; Siskel thought Dreyfuss was too angry. The hosts disagree with Siskel.
“Roger Ebert, 3 stars. Said it was Bill Murray's best movie since Ghostbusters in 1984.”
Bill Simmons · 0:25:48

What ages the best · The parts of the movie that hold up best.

pick Dreyfuss getting the call that Bob allegedly killed himself and saying let's not let it spoil our vacation
“It fucking kills me when Dreyfus gets the call that Bob allegedly killed himself.”
Bill Simmons · 0:36:02
pick The characters saying the title (What about Bob?) in the movie
“Uh, you know I love when they say the title in the movie.”
Bill Simmons · 0:36:39
pick Dr. Marvin's 80s station wagon
“Dr. Marvin's Wagoner. So great to see those 80s wagoners.”
unknown · 0:37:15
pick Julie Hagerty as Lila Marvin: Comic genius, one of the most consistent comedy presences; wishes she had more to do.
“I mean, comic genius, like the mom of our lives from airplane to Lost in America to this movie, she is like one of the most consistent comedy presences”
Sean Fennessey · 0:37:48
pick Dreyfuss's summer vacation outfits
“I have Dreyfuss's clothes in what stage the best.”
unknown · 0:39:06
pick Bob's Don't Hassle Me, I'm Local t-shirt
“I have the don't has to me on local t-shirt as as a wood stage the best.”
Bill Simmons · 0:39:30
pick Dr. Marvin's family conference with the puppets: Shows he is no less a maniac than Bob.
“And then I love family conference.”
unknown · 0:39:37
pick The era of high-concept star comedies, 25 of them between 1987 and 1994
“I just, I do miss a period of mainstream American comedies with movie stars that is like a little high concept, but not too high concept”
Sean Fennessey · 0:43:23

Casting what ifs / Recasting couch · Who was almost cast, and who the hosts would recast today.

pick Woody Allen as Dr. Leo Marvin: Approached to play Marvin and considered to direct; said no. The hosts say it would not work.
“Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Leo Marvin, was also considered to direct, which is bizarre, and possibly co-write the script.”
Bill Simmons · 0:47:34
pick Patrick Stewart as Dr. Leo Marvin
“They also approach Patrick Stewart.”
Bill Simmons · 0:48:13
pick Robin Williams as Bob Wiley: First choice for Bob, before Murray.
“And then Robin Williams was the 1st choice for Bob.”
Bill Simmons · 0:48:19
pick Tiffani Amber Thiessen as Anna Marvin: Recast the daughter with a real high schooler instead of a 26 year old.
“If we wanted to intentionally go high school age for the daughter and not have a 26 year old.”
Sean Fennessey · 0:54:34
pick Sterling K. Brown as Dr. Leo Marvin: All-black cast recast.
“Richard Dreyfuss character, Sterling K. Brown.”
Van Lathan · 0:55:38
pick Sanaa Lathan as Lila Marvin
“Um, his wife is played by Sana Lathin.”
Van Lathan · 0:55:54
nominee Kevin Hart as Bob Wiley: The obvious choice for Bob, but one host says he can only play himself.
“Well, can we just can we just say my fear would be Kevin Hart here?”
unknown · 0:56:21
winner J.B. Smoove as Bob Wiley: A Bob-like figure in Larry's life; he would charm the whole family.
“My other bob is JB Smooth.”
Van Lathan · 0:57:00
nominee Keenan Thompson as Dr. Leo Marvin
“I was thinking to him as Dr. Marvin.”
unknown · 0:57:36
nominee Tracy Morgan as Bob Wiley: Others agree Tracy Morgan as Bob might be even better.
“I think there's a there's a Tracy Morgan possibility here.”
unknown · 0:57:53

Best That Guy (Joey Pants Award) · The best that-guy actor in the movie.

nominee The telephone operator
“I guess the telephone operator is the other one I was looking at.”
unknown · 0:49:25
nominee Aida Turturro as Tony Soprano's sister, in one scene
“Uh, maybe they're not that guys, but uh, Tony Soprano's sister is in one scene.”
unknown · 0:49:30
winner The actor from The Wire who played Carcetti's aide (and Querns on Oz), in one scene
“Yeah, he wins.”
unknown · 0:49:54
nominee Tom Aldredge as Mr. Gutman: Also Mrs. Soprano's father on The Sopranos.
“Tom Aldridge is Mr. Gutman.”
unknown · 0:50:15
nominee Charlie Korsmo as Siggy Marvin
“The other one is, the other one is, um, is Charlie Corzmo?”
unknown · 0:50:38

Vincent Hanna Award · Who dialed it up and maybe overacted.

winner Richard Dreyfuss as Dr. Leo Marvin
“It's got to be Dreyfus. I mean, as much as I love Dreyfus.”
unknown · 0:51:46

Jed Nelson Award · The person who seems to be in a completely different movie.

nominee Dr. Marvin's sister as Fran Brill: Not really a winner: an unexplored character who just shows up and marries Bob.
“Although, the sister... is just an unexplored character, the Dreyfus, she just kind of shows up.”
Sean Fennessey · 0:52:01

Dion Waiters Award · A small role with a big impact.

winner Fran Brill as Dr. Marvin's sister: A puppeteer and friend of Frank Oz.
“Dion Waiters is just a layup.”
unknown · 0:53:50
winner The Gutmans, the diner owners: Co-winners.
“The diner owners. We have co-winners.”
Bill Simmons · 0:53:56

Apex Mountain · Whether this movie is the peak of someone's career.

pick Bill Murray: Not his apex.
“Bill Murray, no.”
Bill Simmons · 1:06:46
pick Richard Dreyfuss: Not his apex.
“Dreyfus, no.”
Bill Simmons · 1:06:48
pick Charlie Korsmo: Yes as an actor, though his post-acting career may top it.
“Charlie Korsma, I'm going to say, I'm going to say yes as an actor.”
Bill Simmons · 1:06:50
pick Julie Hagerty: Not her apex.
“Julie Haggerty?”
Bill Simmons · 1:07:03
pick Death therapy / patient-shrink movies: Maybe the apex of the genre idea, though Analyze This is probably the apex.
“This was probably the apex of death therapy.”
unknown · 1:07:10

Picking Nits · Nitpicks of a movie they love.

pick Bob's OCD comes and goes depending on the scene: A host answers that Bob is getting better as he pursues Dr. Marvin.
“Bob's OCD craziness. Kind of comes and goes depending on the scene.”
Bill Simmons · 1:08:21
pick How the Gutmans are always around, even in a boat with no fishing poles
“How are the Gutmans just always around?”
Bill Simmons · 1:10:06
pick Dr. Marvin's plan to blow Bob up and call it suicide
“I guess I I don't really know what Dr. Marvin's plan was really like ever.”
unknown · 1:10:39
pick Psychiatrists would treat a patient's suicide as an emergency, not wait out a vacation
“The therapists, uh, that I know, the psychiatrists I know are deeply deeply committed to their patients.”
Van Lathan · 1:11:12
pick A vacation from July 31st to Labor Day is too long
“I'm just wondering, is is July 31st all the way to Labor Day a little bit too long of a vacation?”
Craig Horlbeck · 1:17:51

Sequel, prequel or TV show · Whether and how they would continue the story.

pick A 10 episode Netflix remake: Answer: it is a movie, one joke that is hard to sustain over 10 episodes.
“I think it's a movie, not a not a show.”
unknown · 1:11:52
pick A 2021 sequel where Leo is dead and Bob is a Dr. Phil-type TV therapist who unravels
“Can I give you an idea for the sequel?”
unknown · 1:13:22

Probably unanswerable questions · Questions the movie never answers.

pick Was Leo a murderer, and should he have gone to jail for attempted murder?: Hosts agree: yes.
“Probably unanswerable questions. Was Leo a murderer?”
Bill Simmons · 1:12:25
pick Was Bob's previous doctor foisting Bob on Dreyfuss?
“was Bob's previous doctor foisting Bob on the Dreyfus, one of the all-time best voice that's ever happened.”
Bill Simmons · 1:12:38
pick Why wasn't there a sequel?
“Why wasn't there a sequel?”
Bill Simmons · 1:12:56

Memorabilia · A piece of memorabilia they would want from the movie.

pick The Don't Hassle Me, I'm Local t-shirt
“I would I would take the t-shirt, the Game Warren, Bill Murray.”
Bill Simmons · 1:14:32
pick The puppets
“I want the puppets.”
unknown · 1:14:42
pick The lake house
“But honestly, like, it is my life's aspiration to have a home like that house.”
unknown · 1:14:51

Hottest take · A hot take offered in the Leo DiCaprio aside.

pick The famous Fresh Prince scene was ripped off from a Growing Pains episode with young Leo
“One of my hottest takes of all time.”
unknown · 1:05:59

Who won the movie · Who came out on top.

winner Bill Murray as Bob Wiley: Unanimous.
“Who won the movie Bill Murray? unless you guys disagree.”
Bill Simmons · 1:17:19

Films that came up

Claims (43)

career (career phase): Bill Murray → Rushmore. Sean splits Murray's career into pre-Rushmore (1980-1995, star vehicles) and post-Rushmore (character actor).
“So it's like pre-Rushmore post-Rushmore.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:03:51 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (straight man / crazy man): What About Bob? → The Odd Couple. The premise is another straight-guy-vs-crazy-guy movie like The Odd Couple and The In-Laws, but Murray makes it special.
“We've seen movies like this before, the odd couple, the in-laws.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:04:16 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
career (career phase): Bill Murray → Groundhog Day. Bill's three-phase Murray: What About Bob?, Groundhog Day and Quick Change form the adult phase after Ghostbusters.
“he has, what about Bob and Groundhog Day pretty close together? And quick change”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:04:59 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
verdict (underrated performance): Tootsie → Bill Murray. Murray is amazing in Tootsie though nobody thinks of it as a Murray film.
“he's actually amazing in Tootsie”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:06:35 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Will Ferrell → What About Bob?. Only Will Ferrell, in his view, could also have played Bob over 35-40 years; but Murray has a character-actor gear Ferrell may lack.
“I actually think Will Ferrell would have also crushed this part.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:08:08 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Phil Hartman → What About Bob?. In a reboot Van would cast Phil Hartman as the Dreyfuss character.
“I actually would cast Phil Hartman as the Richard Dreyfuss character.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:08:27 · Van Lathan (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (recurring bit): Bill Murray → Stripes. Murray's flirt-by-annoying persona goes back to SNL's Todd and Lisa Loopner sketches with Gilda Radner and Stripes, then becomes the whole premise of What About Bob?
“He did it in stripes when he was trying, you know, his way of trying to like flirt with people would be to annoy them.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:10:13 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
unmapped (year context): What About Bob? → Terminator 2: Judgment Day. 1991 box office: Terminator 2 was number one, with What About Bob? in the top 16.
“Terminator 2 is the number one movie from that year, which we've done on there.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:12:10 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (therapist movies): What About Bob? → Good Will Hunting. Bill's therapist Mount Rushmore includes both, along with Analyze This and Ordinary People.
“Movies that had to include a therapist used in some profound way in the actual plot.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:15:01 · Bill Simmons (0.95 sure it was them)
theme (same premise): Analyze This → The Sopranos. The Sopranos has basically the same mob-boss-in-therapy premise and cut the legs out of Analyze This's legacy.
“the Sopranos completely cut the cut the legs out of that movie from a legacy standpoint because the Sopranos is basically the same premise”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:16:10 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
theme (talent on silly premise): What About Bob? → Analyze This. Both are silly-seeming comedies staffed by hugely accomplished crews, which makes them better.
“a ton of people that are incredibly accomplished working on a movie that seems really silly and it makes the movie that much better.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:17:15 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Anne V. Coates → Lawrence of Arabia. Sean notes the editor of What About Bob? is the woman who cut Lawrence of Arabia, part of an unexpectedly accomplished crew on a silly comedy.
“It's got Ann Coates as the editor, the woman who cut Lawrence of Arabia.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:17:41 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
unmapped (prior episode): Mr. Holland's Opus → Richard Dreyfuss. The trio did Mr. Holland's Opus a few months earlier and discussed Dreyfuss's addiction history there.
“We talked about him a lot when the 3 of us did Mr. Holland's Opus a few months ago”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:19:26 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
people (actor persona): Richard Dreyfuss → Jaws. In the 70s Dreyfuss was the audience POV for nerdy filmmakers (Close Encounters, Jaws), a nice-guy hero, before becoming a true asshole in What About Bob?
“He was this like POV character for all of these nerdy filmmakers, right?”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:22:36 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
people (actor's heel turn): What About Bob? → Mr. Holland's Opus. Both are Richard Dreyfuss movies where he plays an asshole; Sean traces his heel turn from nice-guy hero to the worst guy in the movie, starting here.
“No one has had a heel turn. Like Richard Dreyfuss. And it starts with what about Bob?”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:23:30 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career benchmark): What About Bob? → Ghostbusters. Ebert called it Murray's best movie since Ghostbusters in 1984.
“Said it was Bill Murray's best movie since Ghostbusters in 1984.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:25:50 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (age check): Kathryn Erbe → Kiss of Death. Three years later Erbe plays David Caruso's wife in Kiss of Death, so she reads as an adult, supporting Sean's post-college theory for Anna.
“Catherine Erb, 3 years later, plays David Caruso's wife in Kiss of Death.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:30:46 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (podcast wishlist): Kiss of Death → What About Bob?. Sean would want in on a Kiss of Death rewatchables episode.
“That's a fucking hilarious movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:30:58 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Michael Ballhaus → What About Bob?. Sean says Ballhaus shoots the scene of Siggy scaring Bob like a horror scene, with two heads in the frame, one in back and one in front.
“that's Michael Bauhaus. He's shooting that scene like it's a horror scene, you know, like the 2 heads in the frame, like one in the back and one in the front.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:35:13 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)
unmapped (80s wagoner / lake-house comedy): What About Bob? → The Great Outdoors. The 80s station wagon shows up in many comedies, including The Great Outdoors and Harry and the Hendersons; also lake-house small-town dreaming.
“there was one in the gray outdoors”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:37:24 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
lineage (comedy-mom lineage): Julie Hagerty → Lost in America. Hagerty has been a consistent comedy presence from Airplane! to Lost in America to this film to Marriage Story.
“the mom of our lives from airplane to Lost in America to this movie”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:37:48 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (rewatchables wishlist): Lost in America → What About Bob?. Van pitches Lost in America as an episode; the group has not done it.
“Albert Brooks and Gary Marshall talking in the casino is like one of my 5 favorite scenes of all time.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:38:59 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)
craft (era tone): What About Bob? → National Lampoon's Vacation. Both reflect a time when comedies let protagonists do outrageous things; Clark Griswold kidnaps people at the end of Vacation.
“Well, vacation was like that too. Remember, at the end, Clark Chris, like he kidnaps people.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:45:12 · Van Lathan (0.70 sure it was them)
craft (era tone): What About Bob? → Parenthood. Parenthood used a school-shooting imagery as a comedic device, another example of things no longer made.
“Or even parenthood where they use a school shooting for a comedic device.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:45:21 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
people (shared writer): What About Bob? → Ordinary People. Alvin Sargent, who wrote Ordinary People, provided the story for What About Bob?, which signals respect for therapy.
“the story for the movie comes from Alvin Sargent. Alvin Sargent was the writer of ordinary people.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:46:20 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
lineage (genre lineage): What About Bob? → Pacific Heights. Sean calls What About Bob? a logical successor to Pacific Heights, part of the late-80s/early-90s 'from hell' subgenre where a transactional acquaintance won't leave your life.
“Think of this movie as a logical successor to Pacific Heights. It is it is the same thing.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:46:51 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Woody Allen → What About Bob?. Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Marvin, direct, and possibly co-write; he turned it down.
“Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Leo Marvin, was also considered to direct, which is bizarre, and possibly co-write the script.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:47:34 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Patrick Stewart → What About Bob?. Patrick Stewart was also approached for Dr. Marvin.
“They also approach Patrick Stewart.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:48:13 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Robin Williams → What About Bob?. Robin Williams was the first choice for Bob; he was a bigger star than Murray in 1987-93.
“Robin Williams was the 1st choice for Bob.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:48:19 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
unmapped (prior episode): What About Bob? → Mrs. Doubtfire. Williams's 1987-93 run as one of the two biggest stars was discussed on Mrs. Doubtfire.
“We did this when we did Mrs. Doubtfire.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:48:42 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)
people (that guy): Tom Aldredge → The Sopranos. Mr. Gutman is the actor who played Mrs. Soprano's father on The Sopranos.
“Tom Aldridge is Mr. Gutman.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:50:15 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
what-if (casting what-if): Charlie Korsmo → Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Korsmo was the original choice for the Edward Furlong role in T2 but did What About Bob? instead.
“We found out he was the original choice for the Edward Furlong role, but he did what about Bob instead?”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:50:57 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
unmapped (child-star cohort): Charlie Korsmo → Elijah Wood. Korsmo, Macaulay Culkin and Elijah Wood are called the early-90s three-headed dragon of child actors, like dunking KG and C-Webb.
“Exactly. Corismo Elijah and McCauley.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:51:32 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
unmapped (friendship / Muppets): Fran Brill → Frank Oz. Fran Brill, a Sesame Street/Muppets puppeteer, is in the movie because she is friends with Frank Oz.
“she's friends with Frank Oz.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:52:23 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
industry (Oscar year): Bugsy → What About Bob?. The loaded 1992 Oscars (Hopkins, De Niro, Nolte, Williams, Beatty) explain Murray's lack of a nomination for Bob.
“we've talked in previous episodes about how loaded the 1992 Oscars was.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:59:16 · Sean Fennessey (0.60 sure it was them)
industry (Oscar snub): What About Bob? → Lost in Translation. Murray's one nomination came for Lost in Translation; the group disputes who beat him.
“Who beat him for Lost in Translation?”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:00:34 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
lineage (ripped off): Growing Pains → The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Bill's hot take: Fresh Prince's famous Uncle Phil scene was lifted from a Growing Pains episode with Leo.
“was actually ripped off from growing pains and Leo”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:06:03 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
theme (skill comparison): What About Bob? → The Bourne Identity. Bob's pretending to be someone else to track the doctor is likened to Jason Bourne or Ethan Hunt spycraft.
“Jason Bourne, like CIA detective skills to go in there and pretend to be somebody else, Ethan Hutt skills”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:09:39 · Van Lathan (0.60 sure it was them)
unmapped (OCD treatment): What About Bob? → As Good as It Gets. Bob's improvement by pursuing the doctor is compared to Helen Hunt making Nicholson less OCD.
“So it's almost like Helen Hunt and as good as it gets, making Nicholas and less OCD.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:09:56 · Van Lathan (0.60 sure it was them)
lineage (remake format): What About Bob? → In Treatment. A 10-episode remake would be hard; In Treatment is the nearest show, tracking patients over years.
“I mean, in treatment was the show and treatment was kind of sort of like this.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:12:11 · Van Lathan (0.60 sure it was them)
lineage (sequel jokes): What About Bob? → Meet the Fockers. Bill's sequel idea: Analyze That, Meet the Fockers.
“Analyze that, meet the Fokkers.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:13:09 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
theme (house comparison): What About Bob? → The Good Son. Bill says the lake house is one thing, but the house in The Good Son was probably made up; leads to Culkin evil-kid horror.
“Here's here's where this game ends when you see the house from the good house from the good son.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:16:00 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
unmapped (evil-kid horror): The Good Son → Brightburn. Evil-kid horror lineage: The Good Son, The Omen, Orphan, and Brightburn (Superman-as-alien child).
“He made a movie called Brightburn. Oh, Brightburn's great.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:17:05 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)

Fun items (22)

fun, about Bill Murray's phases: Sean says Murray has two career phases split at Rushmore; Bill argues for three, with Ghostbusters ending phase one. Van jokes they are MC Ewing-ing Bill Murray.
“See, I would argue Murray had 3 phases, not two.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:04:30 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Film year 1991: Bill reads off the 1991 top box office list as a great pop-culture year, asking if 1991 is the movie year to what 1995 is hip hop.
“I wonder if 91 is the movie year to what 95 is the hip hop year.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:13:19 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Siskel and Ebert: Ebert gave three stars and called it Murray's best since Ghostbusters; Siskel felt Dreyfuss gave too angry a performance. The hosts disagree with Siskel.
“Said, Dreyfus gave too angry of a performance and it ruined the movie for him.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:25:58 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Most rewatchable scene: Bill's pick: the first therapy scene, with 'What if my heart stops beating' and the line about two types of people, those who like Neil Diamond and those who don't.
“There are 2 types of people in this world. Those are like Neil Diamond and those who don't.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:28:07 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Catherine Erbe's age: Sean's theory: Anna is a 26-year-old post-college failure living with her family, which is why she invites Bob in. Bill says Sean just made a whole different movie.
“Jesus, you've made a whole different movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:30:16 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Most rewatchable scene: Dreyfuss's puppets: he addresses his daughter via two puppets in the family conference, and Bill says this is when the movie takes off.
“To me, this is when, right here is when the movie takes off.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:31:59 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Bob at dinner: Bob asks if the corn is hand shucked; a hosts' favorite bit, as if there's any other way to make corn.
“Is this corn hand shucked? Yes.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:32:50 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
fun, about Most rewatchable scene: The 'He's not gone, he's never gone' freakout then opening the door onto Bob was both the trailer's hook and Sean's favorite scene.
“My favorite scene is definitely Dreyfuss just blowing his top and doing the he's not gone.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:35:23 · Sean Fennessey (0.70 sure it was them)
fun, about Best quote / most rewatchable: The call that Bob supposedly killed himself: Dr. Marvin's wife says how horrible, he pauses, then 'let's not let it spoil our vacation.' Bill says it turns the light off.
“Oh, well, let's not let it spoil our vacation.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:36:32 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Dr. Marvin's wagoner: What Aged the Best: the 80s station wagon, which the hosts want to return; Bill says there could be a website of 80s wagoners in comedies.
“there could easily be a website just with all the 80s wagoners and different movies”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:37:38 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
fun, about Dreyfuss's physique: Hosts admire Dreyfuss's good thighs, summer vacation outfits, and the Don Johnson-trimmed beard.
“He's showing off those legs.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:39:26 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
fun, about Casting what-if: Woody Allen: Woody Allen was approached to play Dr. Marvin and possibly direct and co-write; the hosts reject it as too much neurosis on screen.
“It's too much neurosis on the screen.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:47:55 · Sean Fennessey (0.50 sure it was them)
fun, about Fran Brill / Frank Oz: The sister is played by Fran Brill, a famed Sesame Street and Muppets puppeteer, in the film because she is friends with director Frank Oz (Miss Piggy, Yoda), which is why puppets show up.
“She's one of the Sesame Street and Muppets people”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:52:31 · Sean Fennessey (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Recasting couch: all-Black cast: Van's all-Black recast: Sterling K. Brown as Dr. Marvin, Sanaa Lathan as his wife, Bob as J.B. Smoove (not Kevin Hart, who 'can't play a character'); Tracy Morgan floated as alternate Bob.
“The Richard Dreyfuss character is Sterling K. Brown.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:55:51 · Van Lathan (0.95 sure it was them)
fun, about Half-fast research: the house: The lake house that explodes at the end was a model replica built at 34th scale on a different lot; the vacation house was filmed at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia.
“they built a 34th size model replica of the house”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:58:39 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Steven Spielberg: Per the internet, Spielberg loved Murray so much he spent $250,000 of his own money campaigning for an Oscar nomination.
“Steven Spielberg loved Murray so much in this movie that he spent 250,000 of his own money”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 0:58:54 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Bill Murray / Richard Dreyfuss: Dreyfuss recalled Murray as 'an Irish drunken bully' who screamed 'Everyone hates you. You were tolerated' and threw a glass-blown ashtray. The hosts side 1000 percent with Murray and mock Dreyfuss for specifying the ashtray was 'modern glass-blown' and 3/4 pound.
“Everyone hates you. You were tolerated.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:02:17 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Charlie Korsmo: The child actor who plays Siggy stopped acting in 1998, got a physics degree from MIT and a JD from Yale, passed the New York bar and now teaches corporate law at Case Western Reserve; Van is stunned.
“Earned his jurisdoctor degree from Yale Law School in 2006.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:03:42 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Apex Mountain: Apex Mountain verdicts: Murray no, Dreyfuss no, Korsmo yes (with an Obama nomination later), Hagerty no, 'death therapy' yes for the apex; Good Morning America passes maybe.
“This was probably the apex of death therapy.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:07:10 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Sequel pitch: Van's sequel pitch: filmed in 2021, Leo is dead, Bob has become Dr. Phil with a TV show; Dreyfuss sued Disney for royalties so Leo must be dead.
“Bob has become Dr. Phil.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:13:43 · Van Lathan (0.50 sure it was them)
fun, about Who won the movie: Who won the movie: Bill Murray, unanimous, compared to Steph Curry's 2017 MVP performance.
“Steph Curry 2017 MVP performance.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:17:25 · Bill Simmons (0.90 sure it was them)
fun, about Pick nit: the 35-day vacation: Producer Craig asks if July 31 to Labor Day is too long a vacation; Bill notes a psychiatrist leaving for 35 days; Van says he'd take it personally.
“he took a 35 day vacation from his patients.”
The Rewatchables · ‘What About Bob?’ With Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan · 1:18:06 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)

Who's talking

Bill Simmons (host): Loves mainstream, star-driven 80s and early-90s comedies and sports-flavored framing; admires Bill Murray. Skeptical about the film's morals, raising whether Bob is a sociopath, and nitpicks plot logic. Sucker for box-office year lists and trivia.
Sean Fennessey (host): Proud Bill Murray devotee who frames careers in eras; loves the 'from hell' genre and craft details like cinematographer and editor credentials. A champion of Julie Hagerty and Dr. Melfi. Gets a kick out of deep trivia and the Muppets.
Van Lathan (guest): Loves the film as a family comedy he watched with his mom and grandmother, and relates to Bob's fears through therapy. Can't stand Kevin Hart as a character actor and loves Prime. A sucker for family-movie nostalgia and the lake-house dream.

The show's recurring bits

Apex Mountain: The moment a star peaks; where on the mountain a performance sits.
Who Won the Movie: The hosts name the person who came out of the film best off.
The Ebert review: Roger Ebert's original review and star rating read aloud. Ebert is cited, never on the show.
Casting what-ifs: Who was almost cast, or who should have been.
Most rewatchable scene: The scene each host would stop on while flipping channels.
Aged best / aged worst: What holds up and what does not.
Picking Nits: The little things in a film the hosts love that they don't think totally work: the nits.
Double feature: The film each host would pair it with; a programming pick.

Names the transcriber got wrong

'Sean Fantasy' = Sean Fennessey
'Van Lathon' / 'Van Lathin' = Van Lathan
'Dreyfus' = Dreyfuss (spelling varies)
'Michael Bauhaus' = Michael Ballhaus
'Ann Coates' = Anne V. Coates
'Kenneth Laurigan' = Kenneth Lonergan
'Catherine Erb/Irby' = Kathryn Erbe
'Charlie Corsmo/Corismo' = Charlie Korsmo
'Julie Haggerty' = Julie Hagerty
'Tom Aldridge' = Tom Aldredge
'Tommy Carketis/Carcandy's' = Tommy Carcetti (The Wire)
'Sana Lathin' = Sanaa Lathan
'JB Smooth' = J.B. Smoove
'Keenan Thompson' = Kenan Thompson
'Tiffany Amber Zen time' = Tiffani Amber Thiessen
'Cisco' = Siskel
'Siggy/Ziggy' = Siggy
'Pasaki' = Lake Winnipesaukee (New Hampshire, per transcript 'Lakewin and Pasaki')
'Joey Pants' = Joe Pantoliano
'Jed Nelson Award' = Judd Nelson Award
'Bob Wiley' sometimes 'Bob White'
'Grums' = Grumes/Grummz? unclear
'Boys of the Hood' = Boyz n the Hood
'gray outdoors' = The Great Outdoors