Dern joining 'Meet the...' franchise

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 19 (UPI) -- Actress Laura Dern has signed up for a role in the next installment in the "Meet the Parents" film franchise, sources told The Hollywood Reporter.

To be directed by Paul Weitz, "Little Fockers" is expected to reunite most of the stars from the big-screen comedies "Meet the Parents" and "Meet the Fockers," including Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Robert De Niro, Blythe Danner and Owen Wilson, the report said.

Dern is set to play the headmistress of the school where Stiller and Polo's characters' children are pupils, the entertainment industry trade newspaper said.

Dern has appeared in the films "Blue Velvet," "Wild at Heart" and "Jurassic Park" as well as the television movie "Recount" for which she won a Golden Globe award.