Ron Howard & Brian Grazer

AGES 48/51

WHY THEM Finally, they get a little respect, with ''A Beautiful Mind'' netting them their first Best Picture and Howard his first directing Oscar (and $171 million at U.S. theaters). More kudos came for their small-screen efforts exec-producing Fox's critically hailed ''24.'' But there are limits to even Howard and Grazer's power: Disney nixed their plans for ''The Alamo,'' a $135 million-budgeted, R-rated epic (the pair was demanding an extraordinary 37 cents on first-dollar profits). The duo will produce, while Howard considers his next directing gig and Grazer focuses on Mike Myers' ''The Cat in the Hat'' and the Coen brothers' ''Intolerable Cruelty.''

You Might Also Like

• All About Brian Grazer
• News + Notes The Deal Report | Gregory Kirschling, Liane Bonin
• News + Notes The Deal Report | Gregory Kirschling, William Keck
• Reel World Reel World (Jan 17, 2003) | Nicholas Fonseca, William Keck