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Elf
One might think Will Ferrell is a cotton-headed ninny muggins for turning down $29 million to make a sequel to Elf, but the actor stands by his decision. In a new profile by The Hollywood Reporter, Ferrell revealed a sequel was, indeed, written for the hit Christmas comedy. He declined the role, however, due to the fact that it was too bad to justify.
“I would have had to promote the movie from an honest place,” Ferrel said, “which would’ve been, like, ‘Oh no, it’s not good. I just couldn’t turn down that much money.’”
Still, the thought of choosing money over his values as an actor didn’t sit quite right with the star: “And I thought, ‘Can I actually say those words? I don’t think I can, so I guess I can’t do the movie.’”
Elf, directed by Jon Favreau, was released in the holiday season of 2003 with a scrappy $33 million budget, raking in a whopping $220 million in cash after earning stellar reviews. Ferrell told THR that while he was filming the hit Christmas comedy, parading around New York City in yellow tights, he figured the movie could turn out to be “the end of his career.”
But as the movie’s release date neared, Elf faced test screenings that proved it had the opportunity to become a classic.
“[My manager] was like, ‘Well, the family one went great, but we could really get eviscerated in this next one. I’m looking at a bunch of what looks like USC frat boys about to go in,'” Ferrell, a member of Delta Tau Delta at USC, recalled. “Then later I hear, no, that group actually liked it, too.”
Right after he released Elf, another cult classic starring Ferrel gained prestige — Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, which debuted in 2004. And, opposite of his opinions on Elf, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues “was a sequel worth having,” per Ferrell.
