Is there anyone out there that doesn’t like Will Ferrell?
His comedic talent and timing is a part of a number of great comedies, from Step Brothers to Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and a plethora of other films in between. Ferrell first got his break through the long running sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, and used that as a launching point to become one of comedy’s biggest names.
Even though he’s been in a multitude of successful projects, the one movie that will stand the test of time above all the rest will be the beloved Christmas film Elf. Believe it or not, when Ferrell signed onto the movie that was released in 2003, there was a feeling that it could be a career-ender. How wrong did critics end up being about that?
Instead, Elf was slotted into the collection of holiday movies that people rewatch every single year. The likes of Christmas Vacation and It’s A Wonderful Life were joined by film about a man raised by elves wandering around New York City in search of his father, all while saving Christmas. And now, whether you like it or not, it seems like the movie and the green and yellow elf costume that Ferrell sported in the film are everywhere you look around Christmas time.
Ferrell was interviewed on Jimmy Kimmel Live last year as he was promoting his newer Christmas musical Spirited, and Kimmel asked the likable comedic actor how he felt about being a part of the fabric of the holiday season. Will answered the only way he knows how to:
“It’s pretty amazing. I can do anything I want from Thanksgiving through January 13th. People just let me into their houses, I can borrow their speed boat if I want to, I can shoplift and just do whatever because of Elf.”
I know he’s joking, but there’s probably a little truth to that…
Other Christmas related topics came up as the movie star sat down with Jimmy Kimmel, such as how he feels about being in a movie that will last generations, as well as the question of whether or not he would ever play Santa Claus in a movie.
To that question, Will said no, though he does have some prior experience:
“No, I think it’s too challenging. Back in my struggling days as an actor, I was a mall Santa Clause and my elf was none other than Chris Kattan. And we walked around for four straight weekends.
We were hired to walk around. We weren’t set up in a chair where you take pictures or a sleigh. We were just mobile Santa and his elf.”
Hey, I’m no film producer, but that sounds like a movie right there. Get Ferrell and Kattan together (who once starred in the cult classic A Night at the Roxbury) and shoot “Mobile Santa” right now.
You can view the entire interview below, with the conversation surrounding Elf taking place towards the beginning of the clip:
