Parenting & Family Quote by Barry Sonnenfeld

Sonnenfeld’s line lands because it treats a filmography like a messy, real family: beloved, uneven, and ultimately out of the creator’s full control. The first sentence is pure showbiz sentimentality, the kind you’re expected to perform when asked about “your work.” Then he punctures it with a comparison that’s borderline rude and instantly recognizable: some projects are Harvard-bound prestige darlings, others are lovable screwups that can’t pass remedial math. The joke isn’t just self-deprecation; it’s a quiet refusal of the fantasy that successful filmmakers are always steering.

The subtext is about authorship in a collaborative, industrial medium. Movies aren’t novels. They’re weather systems made of scripts, stars, budgets, studio notes, marketing demands, and sheer timing. By casting himself as a parent, Sonnenfeld acknowledges responsibility and affection while conceding that results vary for reasons beyond craft alone. Even good “parenting” can’t guarantee a straight-A kid; even a wobbly production can unexpectedly charm audiences.

There’s also a defensive generosity baked in: he won’t disown the “bad” ones. In an era where directors curate their brands and pretend the flops were studio interference, Sonnenfeld shrugs and claims the whole brood. Coming from a producer-director known for big, tonally specific studio films, it reads as a veteran’s coping mechanism and a truth-telling gesture: in Hollywood, consistency is aspirational, not guaranteed, and love is often what’s left when the box office and reviews have moved on.