Two best friends--one unlucky-in-love divorcee (ROBIN WILLIAMS) and the other a fun-loving bachelor (JOHN TRAVOLTA)--have their lives turned upside down when they're unexpectedly charged with the care of 7-year-old twins while on the verge of the biggest business deal of their lives.  The not-so-kid-savvy bachelors stumble in their efforts to take care of the twins (newcomers ELLA BLEU TRAVOLTA and CONNER RAYBURN), leading to one debacle after another, and perhaps to a new-found understanding of what's really important in life.
OLD DOGS is directed by Walt Becker ("Wild Hogs," "Van Wilder") and written by David Diamond ("When in Rome," "The Family Man") & David Weissman ("When in Rome," "The Family Man").

BECOMING "OLD DOGS" Fun Premise, Funny Cast
Take Robin Williams and John Travolta and put them in a movie about a couple of single guys who run a sports marketing firm, then toss in some of Hollywood's funniest actors.  What do you get? 
"It's definitely a broad comedy with a lot of funny set pieces," says producer Andrew Panay, "but most importantly, it's got a lot of heart."
"I rarely read scripts where I'm just laughing out loud," says director Walt Becker.  "It has a great balance of heart, comedy and wonderful characters."
"I love working with John; he's a kick. He's not afraid to try stuff. There are so many great people in this movie.  That's what's been amazing," says Williams.  "Kelly Preston--she's fearless. Seth Green, he's got it all going on, he's funny. Rita Wilson, plus Matt Dillon as a scout master being the alpha male is pretty great, too."
On the heels of his immensely successful film "Wedding Crashers," producer Andrew Panay met with screenwriters David Diamond and David Weissman at a favorite Los Angeles eatery where the story began to take shape.
The film's "old dogs"--long-time friends and business partners in their 50s--are indeed set in their ways.  "One of the men discovers that he's the father of fraternal twins that he never knew about, the result of a hasty one-day marriage," explains writer Weissman. "Now both men, who have never had children, are forced to deal with two 7-year-old kids and all the pitfalls that come with it."
The filmmakers admit that the script was developed and written with a cast already in mind. "Our first choices were always John Travolta and Robin Williams. There are only a few guys that this movie is right for, and they are two of the best in the world.  I mean, you don't get much better," says Panay. "It's really an honor to cast two screen legends together in this film. It's just a dream come true."
Becker worked with Travolta on the box-office smash hit "Wild Hogs" and was excited to have him on board. "John's always great to work with. He's just about the nicest human being on the planet and as an actor he elevates every single scene he's in," Becker says.  "In terms of instincts, he's always right. We've learned to trust each other, and when he's feeling something is working or I feel something is working, we kind of run with it."
Travolta viewed the role as a unique opportunity to combine broad comedy with deep emotion. "My character Charlie likes his privacy, he likes his life, and he has lots of nice, expensive things--a great apartment, a cool car. He never planned on a family," says Travolta. "I look for parts that I can do something with. I like to think, 'Can I contribute something special and make it worthwhile for someone to use me in a film?' It's very important that my interpretation of the character benefits the story."
Casting Robin Williams opposite Travolta created the ultimate dream team, according to the filmmakers. Says Becker, "This could be one of the greatest comedy pairings in a long time."
Becker describes Williams as the consummate performer. "It's incredible.  He's an encyclopedia of jokes, but he's also got incredible depth as an actor. He can throw so much emotion just off a look and in the next second be incredibly funny."
Williams portrays Dan, a brilliant but uptight executive who is also a romantic at heart.  And when he gets impulsive, it's in a big way.  While recovering from a difficult divorce in South Beach with his pal, Charlie, Dan finds himself in a quickie marriage--followed by a quickie divorce. Unbeknownst to Dan, he fathers twins during the brief encounter.  Williams saw the film as an opportunity to revisit fatherhood. "Baby boomers are getting old. You find yourself taking a lot more time to do everything. We are now our parents; that's frightening. You find yourself saying 'I am my dad,' and it's a lot scarier dealing with children in your 50s than it was in your 30s."
The relationship between Travolta and Williams was also as real as it appears on screen. "I've known Robin for 30 years and consider him to be an old friend," says Travolta.
Says Williams, "A lot of his stuff is really physical and that's been good, because he throws it back. If you throw it out there, he'll come and meet you right there, which is great."
Kelly Preston was cast, not as Charlie's girlfriend, but as Vicki, the mother of Dan's twins. "She's so fantastic, one of the best actresses out there," says Panay.  "And what's really interesting is having her as Robin's love interest, not John's. It's very exciting because we get to mix it up a bit."
"It's so cool," says Preston.  "Vickie is such a great character. She's a little high strung, a little crazy, and that's fun for me. And to be Robin's love interest is just a trip.  We had a blast together.
"It's such a great part and a great script," Preston continues. "It was the perfect dream job, because I got to work with my husband and my daughter in her first movie."
Ella Bleu Travolta was cast as one of the twins after telling her parents she wanted to act.  "Then this script arrived and it's almost as if she predicted it," says Travolta.  "How often does a great role come along for a 7-year-old?"   
Travolta says he maintained a constant, but hands-off, presence on the set. "I knew how to do that because my mother was an actress and director, and she knew how to separate professional behavior from familial behavior. I'm always Ella's dad, but I'm also professional with her.  I never interfered with the director's rapport," he says.
The young actress says it was easy to work with director Walt Becker. "If I wasn't saying a line okay, he'd help me with it or give me better lines," she says. "And he's so sweet. He'd tell us we are so great and gave us high fives."
A world-wide search was conducted to cast the precocious 7-year-old Zach, the other twin; filmmakers discovered Conner Rayburn. "We looked under every rock and there was no comparison," says Panay. "Conner is a real pro.  He's fantastic."
Becker says of his two youngest stars, "These are two little pros.  They hit their marks. They did their lines. They even came up to me to suggest new lines. They really grew as actors."
To portray Craig, the ambitious young maverick longing to succeed in the sports marketing business, the filmmakers cast the versatile Seth Green. "I was thinking about who was going to play this guy, and just the visual of Seth Green standing next to Robin Williams and John Travolta made me laugh," says Becker.  "He could be one of the funniest guys on the planet. His delivery is just so dry.  In every scene, I could cut to him, and with just one look, huge laughter follows. He was really a treat."
Green tips his hat to his co-stars.  "All of my scenes are with Robin and John and that to me was very exciting. I've been a fan of both of them for so long," he says. "I've been in films with John, but we haven't really gotten to do a lot of interacting. And Robin is really a hero of mine, I've loved him for as long as I've wanted to be an actor. So getting to act with him was thrilling."
The late Bernie Mac was cast as Jimmy Lunchbox, an over-the-top children's performer and puppeteer, who also happens to be a genius with electronics.
Lori Loughlin portrays Amanda, the beautiful Japanese interpreter who turns Charlie's head. "She comes into the picture when Dan and Charlie are trying to form a deal with a Japanese firm," says Loughlin. "She and Charlie become smitten with each other."
The talented Matt Dillon was cast as Barry, an earnest Pioneer scout leader Dan and Charlie encounter during a family camping trip. "My character is a little overzealous," says Dillon.  "He takes being a scout a little too seriously. I really like doing comedy, the chance to really have fun. I think the best way to play comedy is to play it straight, to play it sincere. I think it's gotta be heartfelt."
Says producer Panay: "What Matt brings to the table is incredible comedic chops.  People loved him in 'There's Something About Mary'--he is unbelievably funny in that film."
Rita Wilson, who portrays Jenna, a hand model and Vicki's best friend, was thrilled to be working with her real-life dear friend. "I love working with Kelly," says Wilson.  "We've known each other for probably 16 years, and I think there is definitely a short-hand if you already have a friendship with someone. It makes coming to work that much easier."
"Rita is absolutely hilarious," says Preston.  "She always makes the character her own."
"It's wonderful when your two stars are Robin Williams and John Travolta and then the supporting cast includes these incredible actors," says Becker.  "There's never a dull moment. The material is already terrific and then it gets elevated by such great performances."

READ MORE ABOUT JOHN TRAVOLTA AND ROBIN WILLIAMS

ON LOCATION IN THE BIG APPLE Filmmakers Capitalize on NYC Locale
The filmmakers selected iconic Manhattan locations, including Central Park, Top of the Rock, Grand Central Station, Radio City Music Hall, Shea Stadium and Times Square.
"Anytime you get an opportunity to shoot in New York City, you take it," producer Andrew Panay says. "It's a challenge in terms of the crowds and traffic, but wow, what an energy it gives to the performances." Read more

ON THE JOB Comedy Superstars, Open-Minded Director Create Fun Set
Producer Andrew Panay says Travolta and Williams exhibited two completely different styles of improvisation. "John has such a controlled improv, it's always coming from a real place. He's always finding the joke within the joke.  Robin is a machine gun. He keeps on firing the funnies. So you have two different approaches, both incredibly funny," he says.
Director Walt Becker's easy-going style was a good match for his creative cast.  "I always feel like if you're not letting your actors contribute, you're not getting everything you can from them," he says.  "And, frankly, I don't care if an actor wants to do a scene standing on his head, because that's just the way I go.  I get one take for the script, one for me, and the rest is for the actor."
Becker's method is one the actors truly appreciate. Says Travolta, "I never go outside the box of the character, because if I do, it'll end up on the cutting-room floor. I make sure all my improvisations are character-motivated." Read more

The REAL Old Dog
The film wouldn't be complete without its four-legged co-star.  Filmmakers tapped Sebastian, a 9-year-old dog to portray Charlie's aging hound Lucky.  "Obviously, he's not supposed to be doing too much, because he's basically got one foot in the grave," says trainer Dawn Barkin. "He does a lot of hanging out on the bed with John. His big, funny sight gag is that he gets to raise his leg and pee on a plant."
Barkin, who works for a company called Paws for Affect, has been training Sebastian for several years. She says getting the seasoned canine to do the leg-lift was surprisingly easy. "He picked it up in a day and a half, which is extremely quick, and he loves to do it. He walks up to objects and just lifts his leg up like it's the funniest thing in the world. It's a behavior he enjoys doing," she says.
The filmmakers agree that the whole process was an enjoyable one--one they think will come through on the big screen.  "I think the audience can expect to have a really fun time," says Becker.  "And that's whether you're a 90-year-old grandma or a 9-year-old boy or a 20-year-old college student."
"I want to make movies that make people happy and make people laugh," says Panay.  "I believe we've done that with 'OLD DOGS.'"

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

WALT BECKER (Director) is an accomplished director, screenwriter, producer and best-selling author.  One of Hollywood's top emerging film-makers, Becker most recently directed the tent pole Disney comedy "Old Dogs" starring Robin Williams and John Travolta, which is set for a 2009 Thanksgiving release. He previously directed Touchstone Pictures' "Wild Hogs" starring John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, William H. Macy, Ray Liotta and Marisa Tomei, which has grossed more than $250 million worldwide.
Previously, Becker directed the breakout commercial comedy "National Lampoon's Van Wilder."
Mr. Becker made his directorial debut with "Buying the Cow" for Sony Pictures, which he also co-wrote.  As a screenwriter, he has sold several scripts to Hollywood studios, and is attached to direct upcoming films at Sony, Universal, Disney and Lionsgate.  Becker is producing a number of feature film projects, including "The Zookeeper" which is currently shooting and starring Kevin James at MGM.  He recently directed the pilot "1321 Clover" for CBS.
Becker is the author of two novels; his latest, "Misconception," was co-written with renowned attorney Robert Shapiro.  His first book, "Link," was on the Los Angeles Times and National Bestseller lists, and is in development for Becker to direct and produce.  He also created and is attached to direct the graphic novel "Last Reign," which Boom! Comics published in 2009.
Becker received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications Studies from UCLA and a Master's Degree in Film from the School of Cinema and Television at USC, where he won the prestigious Robert S. Ferguson Award.

DAVID DIAMOND and DAVID WEISSMAN's (Written By) partnership is rooted in a 30-year friendship that dates back to their high school days together in Philadelphia. They parted company for college; Diamond studied film at NYU and Weissman studied Chinese history, first at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and then at the University of Michigan. Weissman received two Masters Degrees in the subject, one from the University of Wisconsin and the second from Brown University before setting aside academic aspirations to join Diamond, who had settled in Los Angeles to pursue a writing career.
The partners sold their first spec script, "The Whiz Kid," to 20^th Century Fox in 1994. They followed with a series of original ideas for comedies, beginning with "Guam Goes to the Moon" and their first produced credit in 2000, Universal Pictures' "The Family Man," starring Nicolas Cage and Tea Leoni. A collaboration with director Ivan Reitman came next with Diamond and Weissman writing the DreamWorks Pictures sci-fi comedy "Evolution."
In 2005 the team met "Wedding Crashers" producer Andrew Panay, marking the beginning of a collaboration that has spanned five consecutive projects. "Old Dogs" is the first to reach the big screen, followed in January 2010 by Touchstone Pictures' romantic comedy "When in Rome," starring Kristin Bell and Josh Duhamel.
Diamond and Weissman are both married and have five children between them, ranging in age from 4 to 10. It brings them enormous pleasure to bring their unique blend of raucous comedy and genuine emotion and join the Walt Disney Company in creating entertainment the whole family can enjoy.

THE ART OF ORIGINAL FILMMAKING

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