The Minions are going Marvel for Illumination‘s Despicable Me 4 by getting the Super Soldier treatment in a new trailer! It’s been roughly two years since Minions: The Rise of Gru, and younger generations are clamoring for more outlandish antics from Gru’s pill-shaped helpers with a penchant for madness. The new film introduces another addition to the chaotic-good family, with Gru and Lucy welcoming a son. He’s a mama’s boy through and through, but that won’t keep Gru from vying for his love and adoration. 

Despicable Me 4 finds Steve Carell reprising his role as the reformed villain Gru. Throughout the Despicable Me series of films, Gru has left a life of villainy behind in favor of becoming a father, husband, and secret agent. Of course, Gru’s hapless yet helpful helpers, the Minions, will also return in the sequel. Kristen Wiig, Pierre Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, and Steve Coogan are also returning. Chris Renaud (Despicable Me 1 and 2, The Lorax, The Secret Lives of Pets 1 and 2) is directing Despicable Me 4, with animation director Patrick Delage (Sing, Sing 2) co-directing.

In the Despicable Me 4 trailer, Gru’s been compromised, and a villain named Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) is on the loose! Together with his companion Valentina (Sofia Vergara), Maxim unleashes hell on San Francisco using titanic robots and the latest tools of his evil trade. To help Gru, Lucy, and the family from landing in hot water, five Minions “volunteer” to launch a rescue mission. To prepare for the battle, the Minions go full Steve Rogers to gain superpowers. As the Minions learn to use their new gifts, anything and everything goes wrong because it’s the Minions. What did you expect?

I can’t help but enjoy the Despicable Me franchise. I know the Minions are old hat for some of us (especially for parents), but there’s excellent humor and slick animation with every film in the series. I enjoy Gru. I love Lucy and can never get enough of the troublesome trio: Poppy, Agnes, and Margo. Despicable Me 4 looks like a total blast, and it’s coming to theaters on July 3, 2024!

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While Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues was released back in 2013, no solid plan for a follow-up has been announced. However, this does not mean that Ron Burgundy is officially gone from the spotlight, as Will Ferrell looks to break out the character every now and then. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the latest instance of Burgundy’s mustachioed return came at the Netflix comedy special, The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady. Before Burgundy took the stage, he was introduced as “a living legend, a world-class lover and the No. 1 news anchor in all of Sunday.” Then, Ferrell sported a corduroy jacket and proceeded to joke, “My name is Ron Burgundy. I am a very big deal but tonight is not about me. …We are here to honor a champion of the gridiron, a great American, a father and a sexy man, a true patriot — until he was not.”

Burgundy would start in on the obvious target of Brady’s good looks, “This man is gorgeous. … Look at those cheekbones. That’s a million-watt smile right there. … I could get lost in those eyes and right now I am that person,” he said. “Ron, pull it together. You’re a straight man. He’s making you question your sexuality. Stop looking at him. You’re here to make fun of him. Not fall in love. Concentrate.” Burgundy would then continue, “Tom, it’s clear, everybody up here loves you. I love you, although it might just be lust. Could be love, we’ll never know.” Ferrell’s Anchorman character would move on to address the post-football career of Brady. As Burgundy is a champion of the news, he references the possibility of Brady taking on his own broadcasting position, “I can’t wait for you to be up there on Fox Sports commentating on the game you loved, or playing for the Raiders in the playoffs, or coaching the Patriots, or whatever the f*ck you’re gonna do.” He quipped that Tom was “boring” to watch. Then, he continued, “I never liked you Tom in all my years of watching professional football. I never saw a more boring quarterback,” he said, later adding: “He actually made me look forward to all the fun and laughter of a Bill Belichick postgame interview.”

Burgundy segued into poking fun at Brady’s former Patriots coach, “By the way, Bill, wherever you are, I hope, you know, I hope you know it now it was Tom, it was never you. … Remember that period when people thought it was you. Well, it wasn’t. It was Tom. I understand, Bill. You’re currently unemployed. Good luck on ZipRecruiter. There are a lot of jobs in the health care field. I hear male nurses are in great demand and with your bedside manner, no one would rather wake up after gallbladder surgery and look into the loving kind face of Bill Belichick as he gives you a sponge bath.”

Then, Ferrell brought it home, saying, “I mean, let’s be honest. Your best years are behind you, Tom. The Super Bowls, Gisele, your movie career, it’s all done, it’s all gone. But you won’t be forgotten, you’ll always be remembered as Eli Manning’s bitch. Don’t let that get you down, Tom. Like I said before, we all love you. In fact, only one man truly hates you and it is my pleasure to bring him out here, Mr. Bill Belichick,”

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Ben Stiller’s Zoolander is an infinitely quotable cult classic among comedy aficionadoes, and a sequel should have been easier to pull off than turning left. Still, the film failed epically, creating a reckoning for Stiller. Speaking with David Duchovny on the actor’s Fail Better podcast, Stiller says he was “blindsided” by the box office bombing of Zoolander 2 after thinking it would surprise fans more than David Bowie’s cameo in the original film.

“I thought everybody wanted this,” Stiller said about the sequel to his 2001 meme-worthy comedy. “And then it’s like, ‘Wow, I must have really f—ed this up. Everybody didn’t go to it. And it’s gotten these horrible reviews.”

“It really freaked me out because I was like, ‘I didn’t know it was that bad?’ ” Stiller continued. “What scared me the most on that one was I’m losing what I think what’s funny, the questioning yourself … on Zoolander 2, it was definitely blindsiding to me. And it definitely affected me for a long time.”

According to Variety, Zoolander 2 only banked $29 million domestically against a $50 million-dollar budget. Starring Stiller and Owen Wilson as their dumb-as-rocks male model characters from Zoolander, Derek Zoolander, and Hansel, respectively, the sequel takes the dim-witted duo to Rome, where they find themselves the target of a sinister conspiracy. The chuckle-worthy sequel features Penélope Cruz, Will Ferrell, Justin Bieber, Amy Stiller, Katie Couric, Christine Taylor, Justin Theroux, Jon Daly, Jerry Stiller, and more.

Taken aback by the box office failure of Zoolander 2, Stiller opened up to the humbling experience by telling Duchovny, “The wonderful thing that came out of that for me was just having space where, if that had been a hit, and they said ‘Make Zoolander 3 right now,’ or offered some other movie, I would have just probably jumped in and done that,” he recalled. “But I had this space to kind of sit with myself and have to deal with it and other projects that I had been working on — not comedies, some of them — I have the time to actually just work on and develop.”

“Even if somebody said, ‘Well, why don’t you go do another comedy or do this?’ I probably could have figured out something to do. But I just didn’t want to,” Stiller added.

Stiller tells Duchovny about how the Zoolander 2 experience hurt him. Still, looking back on the experience, he learned several valuable lessons. Putting Derek Zoolander in his rearview let Stiller focus on other, more serious projects, like directing the crime drama Escape at Dannemora. His hard work on the miniseries won Stiller a DGA Award for Outstanding Directing, an honor he never thought he’d achieve. 

Was Zoolander 2‘s failure a blessing in disguise? Would you like to see Stiller give the character another shot? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

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Some cliche somewhere said that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words.’ This has proven to be the case for me and especially when it comes to fan art. I have always sought out great fan art and have wanted to share it with as many people as possible. “Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net” is the outlet for that passion. In this column, I will showcase the kick-ass artwork of some great artists, with the hopes that these artists get the attention they deserve. That’s the aim. If you have any questions or comments, or even suggestions of art or other great artists, feel free to contact me at any time at theodorebond@joblo.com.

Argylle by André Barnett

Avatar by Stephen Campanella

Barbie by Edgar Ascensão

Deadpool by Oli Riches

Everything Everywhere All At Once by Wagner Diesel

Mad Max II: The Road Warrior by Angora

My Bloody Valentine by Creepy Carves Design

The Shining by Şahin Düzgün

Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight by Eddie Holly

They Live by Nikos Bogris

The post Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net: Argyle, Avatar, Barbie, Deadpool, Mad Max, My Bloody Valentine appeared first on JoBlo.

PLOT: Will Ferrell learns that one of his closest friends and collaborators is now trans. Unsure of the ground rules in the next stage of their relationship, the two drive from New York to Los Angeles together and reconnect. 

REVIEW: Will & Harper is a gentle, often hilarious documentary about two friends reconnecting after one comes out as trans. The fact that one of the friends is Will Ferrell made it a must-see for me at Sundance. But, it has a lot of resonance beyond its showbiz aspects, with it a nuanced portrait of a life in transition. It starts with essentially being about how the world views Ferrell’s friend, Harper, but eventually, it becomes more about how she views herself.

It’s a complex question because Harper Steele made her transition later in life, with her being sixty-one as the movie starts. She’s interesting, having been the writer on many of Ferrell’s best-loved comedies and SNL skits. As Ferrell mentions in the intro, anything that he did in his career that was unusual, such as Eurovision, his Spanish film Casa de mi Padre, The Spoils of Babylon, or the Lifetime movie A Deadly Adoption, was written by Harper. She also wrote The Ladies Man and worked on Saturday Night Live for twenty years. That she and Ferrell are so funny makes this an uplifting, good-hearted documentary that’s empathetic toward everyone.

One of the best bits in the movie follows Harper as she enters a dive bar in Oklahoma. We learn that she’s always enjoyed visiting seedier places, and she’s not sure how well a trans person will be accepted. As such, when she walks into the bar and sees a Confederate Flag hanging next to a Trump for President and anti-Joe Biden posters, we assume the worst. Instead, the customers are universally kind and accepting, even before Will Ferrell shows up. 

Somewhat less uplifting is an episode where the two visit a steakhouse in Texas and receive an awkward reception. Ferrell himself makes an ill-advised decision to make a show of the event, donning a Sherlock Holmes costume and holding court, leading to the two being observed as if they were in a fishbowl. 

That makes Will & Harper effective, showing how people across all political and social spectrums react to the trans community. To its credit, no one is especially vicious to Harper’s face outside of a sequence where they read cruel tweets. She’s misgendered a few times, but it’s pretty much always by accident, and she never takes it personally – nor does Ferrell. They don’t go around lecturing people; they’re just honestly interested in how people genuinely feel – and for the most part, everyone they meet face to face is tolerant and means well.

Of course, the fact that Will Ferrell is around for the whole thing skews the experience, as it’s unlikely anyone would disrespect this beloved entertainer to his face. But, as the Oklahoma episode proves, even those Harper herself prejudges as intolerant may not be so. It’s an essential lesson for everyone to remember, as political division often binds us to the fact that people are people.

As such, Will & Harper is a hopeful, uplifting film that feels like a story of our time. Director Josh Greenbaum includes plenty of Will Ferrell schtick (he once again takes his clothes off for comic effect) and starry cameos from their real friends (including Kristen Wiig, Tim Meadows, and Will Forte, among others). Still, he doesn’t overload the film with comedy. Ultimately, it’s a slice of life that will resonate for many of us. 

Will Ferrell

GREAT

8

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As comedian Will Ferrell walked across the magnificent stage of The Kennedy Center to accept the greatest honor an America funny person can receive, The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, something happened that made us all remember why he is getting this prestigious honor. The award instantly slipped from Will’s hilarious fingers, shattering this legendary humorist’s bust all over the floor. An obvious gag, that was so damn fitting to what Will represents in the history of the art of doing silly stuff. Without breaking character for a second, Will hilariously tries to pick up the pieces as the world just sat back and laughed… but not laughing at him, we were laughing with him. The appeal of Will Ferrell comes from his innocent “I don’t give a f*ck” attitude that elevates simple stupid jokes to performance art. As Mr. Ferrell once said, “What I recognized when I started doing comedy was that I’m probably not the wittiest, not the fastest on my feet, but the one thing I can guarantee is that I won’t hold anything back.” And that funny philosophy of not holding back put this man on top of the comedy world, delivering hit after hit before he hit an inevitable wall.
Let’s find out: WTF Happened to… WILL FERRELL?

But to truly understand what happened to Will Ferrell, we go back to the beginning. And the beginning began when he was born on July 16th, 1967 in Irvine, California. He took some acting classes and did some small theater before joining famed LA-based improv group The Groundlings in 1994. After some one-offs on sitcoms like Grace Under Fire and Living Single, he became a cat… Ferrell closed out his now-iconic Saturday Night Live audition by mimicking a cat pawing at objects on the floor, getting applause and a job during season 21, standing out in a largely new cast. In retrospect, Lorne Michaels even put him in the top 3 cast members ever. Here he would perfect impersonations of George W. Bush, Ted Kaczynski, Neil Diamond; Alex Trebek, Janet Reno, and more. Other famous characters and sketches include his Spartan cheerleader,”, his cowbell-clanking Gene in “More Cowbell” and one half of the Butabi Brothers, a sketch that flopped at Groundlings but was such a hit on SNL that it spawned a feature, A Night at the Roxbury, a surprising financial hit. He would also turn up in other big screen spins Superstar (1999) and The Ladies Man (2000).

During his tenure on SNL, he also popped up in 1997’s Men Seeking Women, the first two Austin Powers movies (1997 and 1999), 1999’s Dick (stealing scenes as Bob Woodward), The Suburbans (1999), Drowning Mona (2000), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001) and 2001’s Zoolander, marking an early big screen go at playing dress-up, which would become a bit of a signature. There, too, was the short-lived animated series The Oblongs.

When it was time for Ferrell to leave SNL – and a $350,000 salary – in 2002, he wasn’t so sure if his movie career would tank. After all, many had tried and failed to launch into movie stardom post-SNL. Enter the only tank he would see for years: Frank the Tank, the runaway fan favorite character from Old School (2003) that nabbed him the first of many MTV Movie Award nods and showed he would bare it all – literally – for a laugh. He would hop his way into genuine superstardom with that same year’s Elf, which he figured could have just as easily killed his career instead of pulling in $250 million, and becoming an instant Christmas classic (2022’s Spirited, on the other hand, won’t exactly be an annual favorite.)

Will Ferrell was officially a marquee name. Really, how often were people still going to the movies for one comedy star? He had become the face of the genre, a brand in and of himself. When you saw Will Ferrell on the poster, you knew what you were getting: an abrasive, dense, loveable know-nothing with a sense of humor that fit the mold of frat houses…which pretty much pinpointed his fanbase, too. And its a beautiful thing. There was only one question: “I’m Ron Burgundy…?” Another signature character emerged with Anchorman (2004), which Ferrell has autobiographical ties to in that he studied sports broadcasting. The movie –and character– were hits, solidifying Ferrell as one of the most reliable faces and voices in comedy. (The 2013 sequel tried to squeeze too much out of a good thing far too late, as did “The Ron Burgundy” podcast launched in 2019). That same year, he played the Woody Allen surrogate in Melinda and Melinda, a role that didn’t fit him.

2005 brought a unique mixture for Will Ferrell. After teaming with his Wilson Brother buddies – also staples of the Frat Pack – in The Wendell Baker Story, he got his first kick in the pants with Kicking & Screaming and Bewitched, both of which earned him his first Razzie nominations. These were bad projects that were below him, that limited the antics his fanbase loved, that didn’t cross demographics the way he hoped. There would be awards redemption in The Producers, earning a surprise Golden Globe nod. But his undeniable shining moment, meatloaf and all, was in Wedding Crashers, giving just about the funniest cameo in modern movies, proving that sometimes a little Ferrell goes a long way, a less is more situation. Another hit later on came in the form of shorts, co-launching with Adam McKay the comedy site Funny or Die, particularly with The Landlord, still one of the funniest shorts ever put on the web. Helping to bring in a new era on online internet world wide web comedy that still goes on to this very day…

Ferrell would try to branch out as well with dramedy Winter Passing. Such ventures into drama found fare that would range from passable to buzzworthy, as was the case with his Golden Globe-nominated performance in Stranger Than Fiction (2006), which saw Ferrell at his best. He would try this offbeat mixture again with 2010’s Everything Must Go, an under-appreciated performance that showed he could handle drama but still wasn’t strong enough for us to really take him seriously.

While Ferrell was working on proving himself adept at drama, he couldn’t escape having to be a star of comedies. He constantly felt the pressure to get a laugh – he often tells stories of people coming up to him and yelling, “Do something funny!” – perhaps a reason why he would dabble in drama. Such fare could be jarring to viewers, especially when the experimentation wasn’t clear. This is what happened with A Deadly Adoption (2015), a straight-faced TV movie that went well above most peoples’ heads. Part of the reason – other than Ferrell starring in a Lifetime movie – was that he had just finished up The Spoils of Babylon (2014), a spoof of cheesy, over-the-top stuff he wouldn’t normally be associated with. That a sequel to Spoils came out just within weeks of A Deadly Adoption wasn’t only perplexing, it showed that Ferrell may not give a damn if he makes you happy. “I’ve always loved making other people laugh, but I’ve never needed it. I’ve never had the need to have to make you like me.”

And so no doubt comedies were his true comfort zone. Around the time of the mid-2000s ventures came the hilarious blockbuster Talladega Nights (2006), his first $100+ million movie since Elf. And this showed that Will and John C Reilly worked wonderfully together. Although introduced with Anchorman, this launched a string of movies that banked on Ferrell getting laughs through unexpected professions and/or goofy wigs, playing a figure skater with a dumbass haircut in Blades of Glory (2007) and a basketball player with a ‘fro in Semi-Pro (2008). So desperate to play dress-up, it came off as unconfident in the material (see also: the luscious locks in 2020’s Eurovision Song Contest). And while his core fanbase could stomach it, Ferrell was clearly losing steam in terms of creativity. The only saving grace here was 2008’s Step Brothers, an immediate hit that was nearly peak Ferrell, again showing us that Ferrell and Reilly were the perfect comedy team.

2009 brought the bomb Land of the Lost which was embarrassingly awful and is a great example on how not to use Mr. Ferrell’s skills, in addition to going back to the George W. Bush well, reprising him on Broadway to a surprise Tony nomination, which is a great example on how to use Mr. Ferrell skills. Ferrell would kick off his decade with another hilarious hit, the Mark Wahlberg collab The Other Guys (2010), launching a pairing that led to Daddy’s Home (2015) and its 2017 sequel, neither of which captured the unlikely magic of The Other Guys but people still went to watch. 2010 also saw him returning to voice work for the first time since Curious George (2006) with Megamind as the titular villain, later on joining The Lego Movie (2014) and its 2019 sequel.

He would try his hardest to replace Michael Scott on The Office and 2012 brought Tim and Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie, also a funny Spanish language flick Casa de mi Padre (done so to get people to ask, “Why did you do this?”, which we did and its actually really funny).

Following this, he demonstrated one of his greatest flaws on a most embarrassing level: showing he couldn’t just do anything and have it be funny – like The Campaign, which let Zach Galifianakis ride his Hangover wave. On paper I am sure it sounded like a surefire hit, but it wasn’t. Same with 2015’s fish out of water comedy Get Hard. I’m sure the studio thought they had comedy gold on their hands, but no, audiences were getting tired of this humor and could kinda feel that producers were getting lazy when it came to his casting and wrongfully assumed that throwing Ferrell in the barrel would equal instant gut-busting laugher. But no, Will needs the right character in the right film. 2017 brought another film that just wasn’t right called The House, a dud with fellow SNL alum Amy Poehler.

He would re-team with co-star John C. Reilly yet again, which should have been another perfect comedic duo performance but was an absolute disaster. In some ways, it stopped Hollywood from believing in comedy – the film was 2018’s Holmes & Watson. Will played Sherlock, Reilly played Watson. It was a pathetic lazy attempt to cash in on the brilliance of Talladega Nights and Step Brothers. It feels like nobody put any thought into this one. I’m sure the filmmakers thought that just putting them in wacky old times clothes and having them scream and flop around on screen for 90 minutes would be enough, but this needed more cowbell.

In 2019, he and longtime partner Adam McKay split over casting decisions for HBO’s Winning Time. Ferrell would fare well on TV regardless, landing four Emmys so far for producing, notably Succession.

Ferrell even tried out dramas again, although his remake of Force Majeure, Downhill (2020), didn’t quite land. 2023 was another prolific one for Ferrell: lending a voice in Strays, he was in Quiz Lady and perfectly popped up Barbie as the head of Mattel, hinting that he’s still got his chops given the right material. I think this is the type of character that Will will be stuck with for a while and that is not bad thing at all, cuz he’s fracking brilliant in Barbie.

So what is Will’s destiny? What type of roles will Will choose next? But that is not up to us: it’s up to Will Ferrell. And more often than not, it’s on brand. He wants to try out a risky drama? It makes sense even if we don’t understand it. He wants to put on funny clothes and headgear? Of course he does! He wants to play ball with the Cubs and do a drum battle with the Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith (no doubt his long-lost twin)? How do we watch?! He even recently performed DJed at a college frat party and even hopped on stage at a charity even to bust out his tune “Boats N Hoes” along side his step bro Reilly and Snoop Dogg which was so funny it made us all want a Step Brothers sequel but ya know what… lets not ruin that and just appreciate and enjoy that Will is enjoying himself. We don’t need a Step Brothers 2 because we are living Step Brothers 2. Will Ferrell seems like the type of guy who just wants to have a little fun while he is on this planet and his thirst for a good time (on and off the screen) is contagious and funny. Fun is fun. I think most of Will’s sense of humor can be broken down to him saying something like, “Hey. Look how much fun I am having. Isn’t that hilarious?”

Will Ferrell was once told by his father, “If [something] doesn’t work out, it’s not you, and don’t ever be afraid to just hang it all up and do something else.” Considering his strange offshoots, what else could we imagine him doing? Whether he’s an oversized elf or an anchorman or a step brother or a racecar driver or whatever Frank the Tank has going on – good or bad – we want him in comedies, cinema always needs a clown…. the movies need him – but as we all know now, it can’t just be any movie.

The post WTF Happened to Will Ferrell? appeared first on JoBlo.

Some cliche somewhere said that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words.’ This has proven to be the case for me and especially when it comes to fan art. I have always sought out great fan art and have wanted to share it with as many people as possible. “Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net” is the outlet for that passion. In this column, I will showcase the kick-ass artwork of some great artists, with the hopes that these artists get the attention they deserve. That’s the aim. If you have any questions or comments, or even suggestions of art or other great artists, feel free to contact me at any time at theodorebond@joblo.com.

Aquaman by Rick Forgus

Care Bears by John Dunn

The Color Purple by Dorothea Taylor

Die Hard by Bryan Johnson

Elf by Derek Eads

The Exorcist by Ruben Martinez

Godzilla Minus One by Mickaël Journou

The Green Knight by Nick Low

Hayao Miyazaki by Wagner Diesel

Killers of the Flower Moon by Max Finkel

The post Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net: Aquaman, Care Bears, Elf, Die Hard, Godzilla Minus One, Killers Of The Flower Moon appeared first on JoBlo.

Before you start roasting New Line Cinema‘s chestnuts on an open fire, there are no official plans for an Elf remake or sequel. However, Elf‘s original casting director, Susie Farris, says she would “love to” work on a remake if the opportunity arises. While speaking with People for the 2003 holiday comedy’s 20th anniversary, Farris floated the name of another Saturday Night Live cast member to replace Will Ferrell for a potential remake. “Off the top of my head, I’m just going to say Bill Hader,” Farris told People. “I just think that he’s quirky and endearing and yeah, I’d like to see Bill Hader,” she added.

While I could see Hader playing Buddy the Elf in an Elf remake, the thought of an Elf remake makes me hesitate. The Jon Favreau-directed film is already a holiday classic. It performs like gangbusters around the holidays in physical media sales (those Walmart bargain bins are hoppin’ y’all) and television network screenings. Morbid curiosity could put asses in seats if a remake comes to theaters, but I think a theatrical re-release could do just as well.

While speaking with People, Farris commented on Ferrell’s unwillingness to return for a sequel. “I’ve read that Will felt like he gave this character all that he could give it,” she said. “I think if Will wanted to do a sequel, there would be a sequel,” Farris adds. “Creatively, I hope that he is very fulfilled in life, but I’d like him to do this.”

Regarding what an Elf sequel could entail, Farris says she could see Buddy and Jovie (Zooey Deschanel) as new parents living at the North Pole. The baby’s name would be Susie, and Farris says she could see Elle Fanning or McKenna Grace playing the part.

What do you think about Bill Hader playing Buddy for a would-be Elf remake? How about an Elf sequel starring Ferrell and Deschanel as parents to a teenage girl? I’d rather see a sequel than a remake, but I doubt Ferrell is game to stuff his mouth full of cotton balls and chug liters of pop again at his age. In the comments below, let us know what you think about this Elf madness.

The post Elf’s original casting director says another SNL actor could be a great fit to play Buddy in a potential remake appeared first on JoBlo.

It was a Step Brothers reunion over the weekend, as Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly joined Snoop Dogg on stage to sing the bonafide classic “Boats ‘n Hoes”, which was robbed of an Oscar nomination we tell ya!

To celebrate Snoop Dogg’s 52nd birthday at the Best Night of Your Life 2 benefit show, Ferrell and Reilly got on stage at Los Angeles’ Greek Theater in outfits similar to those they wore in the “Boats ‘n Hoes” video, prompting a major audience reaction, as can be seen in a video posted on TMZ. 52 isn’t normally a big-bash sort of birthday, but it’s Snoop Dogg, so every day is an occasion to party. And if you can bring back the team of Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly – who haven’t appeared in a movie together since 2018’s Holmes & Watson – all the better. Snoop Dogg even showed off his cake, which wasn’t nearly as extravagant or smoke-filled as we would have hoped…On the occasion, Reilly said, “Yesterday was a very special day…It was Mr. Snoop Dogg’s birthday. We’re about to sing happy birthday to the greatest rapper in the world!”

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A post shared by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg)

Considering we will probably never get a Step Brothers 2 – perhaps especially so due to the split between Ferrell and one-time partner Adam McKay – and the once-planned rap album with the duo was scrapped long ago, this short reunion will have to do. At least it’s a fun way to remind everybody just how beloved Step Brothers remains in the 15(!) years since its release. Step Brothers would go on to gross $100 million domestically, placing it in the company of Due Date, This Is the End and Bad Grandpa as far as R-rated comedies go.

Outside of the Step Brothers number, Snoop Dogg also performed one of his signature songs, “Gin and Juice”, which we imagine goes quite well with boats and hoes. Snoop Dogg also appeared alongside Ferrell in 2003’s Old School during the Mitch-a-Palooza sequence.

Where does Step Brothers’ “Boats ‘n Hoes” rank in your favorite movie songs? Do you think a Step Brothers 2 should be made? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below!

The post Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly have Step Brothers reunion to celebrate Snoop Dogg’s birthday appeared first on JoBlo.

PLOT: A brilliant but tightly wound, gameshow-obsessed young woman, Anne, and her estranged, train-wreck of a sister Jenny, must work together to help cover their mother’s gambling debts. When Anne’s beloved dog is kidnapped, they set out on a wild, cross-country trek to get the cash the only way they know how: by turning Anne into a bona-fide gameshow champion. 

REVIEW: I love quiz shows. I also love movies and series about quiz shows. Whether it be Robert Redford’s acclaimed Quiz Show, the subplot in Magnolia, or the long-running SNL sketch spoofing Celebrity Jeopardy, something is fascinating about trivia challenges and the people who participate in them. The new Hulu original Quiz Lady takes that concept and adds elements of various comedies, including road trips, raunchy humor, family dysfunction, and more. The result is a far more nuanced film than the trailers present, but one that is absolutely focused on being funny. Directed by Jessica Yu and featuring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh as siblings, Quiz Lady is a touching comedy about reconnecting with family and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. While not nearly as zany as the trailers make it seem, I smiled through this movie and enjoyed every minute.

Quiz Lady centers on Anne (Awkwafina), a milquetoast accountant who hates the limelight. Living alone with her dog, Linguini, and trudging along day-to-day, Anne seeks comfort in her daily viewing of a Jeopardy-esque game show hosted by Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell). Watching the show as a kid helped Anne cope with her tumultuous home life as her parents fought and her older sister left Anne home with their gambling-addict mother. When their mom escapes from the assisted living facility she resides at, Anne and Jenny (Sandra Oh) reconnect begrudgingly. When Ken (Jon “Dumbfoundead” Park) dognaps Linguini in exchange for their mother’s debts, Jenny convinces Anne to apply to be on her favorite quiz show. Anne scared to death of being on stage but masterful at trivia, refuses, and Jenny takes it upon herself to force her sister to go to Philadelphia for auditions. On their journey, the sisters fight, reconcile, and fight some more as they try to save Linguini. They also rediscover each other as they take on whatever life throws their way.

The plot and formula of Quiz Lady is familiar and hit the same notes you would expect it to. This could easily have been written off as another familiar comedy, but what elevates it is Awkwafina and Sandra Oh. In any other case, I would have expected the roles to be reversed. Still, thankfully, Awkwafina plays Anne far more conservatively than the comedian is known for, echoing her more nuanced role in The Farewell. Sandra Oh, known for her dramatic performances, is wonderfully unhinged as the bohemian Jenny and steals the film. The two actresses play off of each other like real siblings, giving Quiz Lady a heavy dose of charm that would have been missing with less talented leads. It also helps that the supporting cast is all very good, especially a subdued Will Ferrell, who channels the aura of late Jeopardy host Alex Trebek, a spoof of which he played for years on Saturday Night Live. Ferrell is charming and keeps his performance on the subtle side, playing to the strengths of the actors around him.

We also get a nice turn from Holland Taylor as Anne’s agoraphobic neighbor, Francine. Taylor is good in everything she does, but in playing Francine’s obsession with actor Alan Cumming, she is very funny. The Alan Cumming obsession allows Quiz Lady to provide the late Paul Reubens with a fitting cameo send-off. There is also a small turn by Tony Hale as a Benjamin Franklin-themed innkeeper that had me laughing every time he was on screen. The other key role in the film comes from Jason Schwartzman as Ron Heacock, the reigning quiz show champion portrayed as an evil mirror take on Jeopardy champions like Ken Jennings and James Holzhauer. All of the supporting actors in Quiz Lady have shown an ability to go deep into comedies. Still, they support the material rather than stealing the limelight from Awkwafina and Sandra Oh.

Written by Jen D’Angelo, who co-wrote the recent horror comedy Totally Killer and last year’s Hocus Pocus 2, never pushes the comedy in Quiz Lady to be graphic or shocking. Even though some moments include scatological humor and a funny sequence involving a grossly dislocated wrist, most of what made me laugh in this film was organically driven by the cast’s performances. Director Jessica Yu, best known for documentaries including In The Realms of the Unreal and her Oscar-winning short Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O’Brien, shows she is truly adept at narrative filmmaking. Having directed comedian Maria Bamford’s 2017 special and multiple Ryan Murphy series, Yu has a great grasp of ensuring the performances take center stage and allow the actors to do their thing. Even when the film risks going off the rails with a hallucinogenic drug sequence, Yu never loses sight of the charm and realistic comedy that makes Quiz Lady work.

I really appreciate that Quiz Lady is not entirely the movie the trailers make it out to be. From the preview, I thought I was in for another zany, gross-out comedy, but I am glad to say that Quiz Lady is a feel-good comedy that showcases Awkwafina and Sandra Oh in ways we have not gotten to see them before. Both actresses are really good at playing against expectations and are the most believable siblings I have seen in a movie in a long time. I smiled throughout this movie even though I knew exactly where it was going the entire time. Familiarity is not always a bad thing when a movie makes you feel good, and Quiz Lady definitely succeeded in making me feel good. While it is rated R, there is not much that would prevent all ages from enjoying Quiz Lady outside of a few swear words. I enjoyed this movie and have no doubts anyone will be charmed if they check it out.

Quiz Lady

GOOD

7

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