Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy was one of the funniest and certainly one of the strangest films to come out in 2004. Its got a loose plot built around the extraordinary improvisational skills of people like co-writer/star Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, David Koechner and Fred Willard.
Besides the amazing talent in front of the camera behind the scenes were people like producer Judd Apatow and of course co-writer/director Adam McKay. Before Anchorman, Adam McKay was best known as one of the founding members of Upright Citizens Brigade and as head writer of Saturday Night Live for three years.
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy has just been released on DVD and you can also buy that and the second movie Wake Up, Ron Burgundy in a special double DVD gift set.
Buy the DVD of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Daniel Robert Epstein: Im a big fan of yours way from way back so its a pleasure to talk to you.
Adam McKay: Thats great. I checked out the site a couple of times and its a kick. I love it.
DRE: I actually got to see you do an ASSSSCAT at the UCB Theatre about five years ago.
AM: I havent done that in a long time.
DRE: How come?
AM: I was in town a couple of weeks ago and people were telling me to go do it but I was lazy so I didnt.
DRE: Anchorman ended up making about $95 million in the theater. That must be unbelievable for you.
AM: It is insane. Were giddy over the fact that we made that crazy-ass movie and it made a profit. It was a bonus we did not expect.
DRE: How did the idea for Anchorman come about?
AM: We had written a script for Paramount years ago about car salesmen that we couldnt get made. Will hadnt really done anything where it had just been him in movie. So we decided to write another one. Will had seen this documentary about these anchormen talking about how freaked out they were about women coming into the office. It just made us laugh so hard to hear these respectable avuncular characters going on and on about how they were freaked out by women. Will started doing an impression of one of the guys. Pre-Judd we wrote this one draft that was pretty crazy. It had the anchor team crashing a plane on a mountain and getting in fights with baboons wielding throwing stars. It was just insane. We sent it all around town and literally everyone said no to it. Then we hooked up with Judd and we rewrote it. We tamed it down a little bit as far as baboons with throwing stars.
DRE: Thats too bad.
AM: Yeah I know, it pains me because it would have been hilarious. But we still go to do some insane stuff in the movie. The movie got to DreamWorks who were always cool because they understood it. We just started rewriting with Judd and doing read-throughs. Judd is the best because he kicks our asses into rewrites. Also god bless DreamWorks because they let us do the anchor team gang fight and the animated sequence.
DRE: Judd has got a great line in Anchorman, It smells like a turd covered in burnt hair. Also right after that there is one of the most quotable lines from the movie It smells like Bigfoots dick. That sounded like someone wrote that down and told this woman to run through the scene and say that.
AM: I think that was mine. That woman is our costume designer Debra McGuire. Literally on the fly we said that we said we had to have more people saying what it smells like. I was just pulling people out of the crew telling them to say certain things. Debras teenage son and his friend were on the set that day. They just couldnt believe that his mom was saying Bigfoots dick. He was in heaven.
Actually the master of thinking up horrible smells is Paul Rudd some of which are on the DVD. He came up with That smells like the inside of a fake leg which is pretty horrific. I think they bleeped, It smells like Henry Kissingers taint, on the DVD.
DRE: You are definitely a comedy fan yourself and youre 36 so you grew up with movies like Caddyshack, Stripes and Fletch. Anchorman is on its way to becoming a classic of that nature. It gets quoted all time. Whats that like for you to have created a movie that will become a classic comedy that will get quoted?
AM: Its funny because those are the movies we were aiming for, like Airplane and Caddyshack. Those ensemble silly comedies where they didnt put too much emphasis on story and it was just about the absurdity. If it even gets near to those movies we will be giddy. This movie gets a funny reaction, people either worship it or really hate it. People will say stuff like You probably dont want to hear how much I loved it. We do want to hear it!
But also if you look at a movie like the first Austin Powers it has the same kind of lifespan. The initial reaction was kind of mixed and then it sort of grew on people once it got on DVD and cable.
DRE: I came up with a very geeky theory about Anchorman. The movies that are similar in tone are Zoolander and Austin Powers. But those movies were also parodies of genres like Manchurian Candidate and James Bond. Anchorman doesnt exactly do that. You almost parodied a period but without getting too steeped in the period aspect.
AM: Thats a strange thing thats happening with the 70s. Its almost transcended parody and has become its own style. You are able to ignore the parody and go off into your own universe. [Ghost World creator] Daniel Clowes had a funny take on it. He said he was nostalgic for the 70s nostalgia of the 50s like Happy Days and Sha Na Na. Thats almost what's happened with the 70s.
DRE: Yeah your movie isnt about the clothes or the cars.
AM: We never wanted to do that because we felt those jokes were played out. It was more about that old style guy and that proper world that wasnt proper at all.
DRE: I saw an interview with Ivan Reitman about one of his later films, Fathers Day. He said that keeping Robin Williams and Billy Crystal on the story of the movie was one of his biggest tasks which is too bad because it was the movie Fathers Day. Did you have the same sort of thing with Anchorman?
AM: We did have a story which you can see on the other movie, Wake Up, Ron Burgundy. It was this whole traditional story with these radicals called The Alarm Clock. I always knew I had that so I knew within that story we could go crazier but then we ended up cutting it. Then the movie got even more amorphous. We always knew we had enough of an arc that we could get away with doing crazy stuff. Also I really hate when the funny comedy gets all sincere in a bogus way. All of a sudden youre supposed to care about this woman loving this bizarre character. Thats why one of my favorite lines is when Christina Applegate says Im 72 percent sure I love you. Do we really buy that this woman would give herself completely to this guy?
There is a wrangler quality to it but most of it happens in the editing room. When you are on the set you try every option to get as much as you can. The editing room is where the brutal cuts happen. There you become your own worst enemy and try to make sense of it.
DRE: Was the process of this film to not say cut and just let the actors keep improvising?
AM: Always. We rolled out on the film dozens of times especially with certain people. With Will you just let the guy go, Paul Rudd is a hell of an improviser, Steve Carell is amazing and Applegate can do it as well. For Wake Up, Ron Burgundy Maya Rudolph was the improv star. We did a cameo scene with Amy Poehler and she can just go all day long.
DRE: The Amy Poehler scene is hysterical.
AM: Yeah, it pained me to cut it.
We shot so much film. You know its a good sign when halfway through shooting the film company shows up and gives you champagne. They were liking us quite a bit.
DRE: Are you as happy with Wake Up, Ron Burgundy as you are with Anchorman?
AM: It all makes me laugh but obviously Wake Up, Ron Burgundy is pretty ragged. We had to repeat some scenes from Anchorman to make it make sense. But the second half of Wake Up, Ron Burgundy does pretty well. I would say I am. I think the second half of Wake Up, Ron Burgundy is as good as anything else we did.
DRE: Were you shooting Anchorman when Elf came out?
AM: Yes.
DRE: Did things change much after Elf did so well?
AM: People want you to slam the studio but I have to say DreamWorks was very cool. They knew that Will was going to be the next big thing and they put out Old School so there was an inkling of that. When Elf came out I think what changed was that they decided to release the movie during the summer. They felt it could compete to make summer dough and they gave us a bigger advertising campaign.
DRE: Did you oversee the uncut version of Anchorman?
AM: The uncut thing is a little weird. I think everyone knows that the uncut version is a bit of a game they play because often you get it and its like two extra minutes. I think uncut applies some lascivious creative underbelly thats being let loose. The truth is this movie was never going to be rated R so we didnt shoot nude scenes. I didnt know that the uncut was as big of a deal as it is so we quickly threw in a few funny scenes that were kind of dirty and that was it. Now all of a sudden the uncut has become the definitive version. Apparently when it comes to these comedies they push the uncut version and I heard that 90 percent of the sales are for the uncut version. If I had known that I might have taken more care but there are a couple of gems in there like I shit a squirrel. In fact the dirtiest part of the uncut version is our commentary. We didnt even talk about the movie but instead we played the game, what is the dirtiest thing we can say? They ended up beeping half of what we said because it was even too dirty for the uncut version.
DRE: The audience can really tell how much fun the actors had making this movie, did you have as much fun directing?
AM: Oh yeah! I had so much goofy fun it was insane. I must have ruined a dozen takes from laughing. On the DVD there might be a couple of takes where you can see me run out of the room because Im laughing at Will. He would get me by doing five takes but then on the sixth take he would do something so unexpected. I think I had too much fun so on the next movie I have to be more stoic.
DRE: David Koechner didnt get as much press as Paul Rudd or Steve Carell but he was hysterical in the movie.
AM: Ive known David from even before Saturday Night Live. We were having a tough time casting the role of Champ Kind because you need someone who is a ball of energy. He came in to read for it but I didnt want to push him to the studio too hard because hes a friend of mine. We showed his tape to the studio and unprovoked they told us to hire him. It was great because I got to call my friend and tell him he was hired.
DRE: Will he be in your next movie?
AM: The next movie we are doing is about NASCAR drivers called Talladega Nights. I couldnt do a NASCAR movie without David Koechner in it. Hes from Kansas City and his dad used to sell turkey coops so he is from that world.
DRE: I know Steve Carell has a big career ahead of him thanks to your movie.
AM: He was so frickin good. We always knew that role was going to be a fun role to play but he just took it three levels higher. It was amazing to watch. Judd Apatow is directing Steve Carells new movie The 40 Year-Old Virgin. I just talked to him yesterday because hes out tech scouting.
DRE: Its great that guys like you really want to get behind the camera and not just hire any old director.
AM: If youre doing it right with a comedy you should be having a good time.
DRE: Did you ever think that Anchormans humor would translate to the audience?
AM: The joke I have with friends of mine at SNL. like Tina Fey. is that I say the movie is all sketches from the last half hour of SNL. Will and I used to love to do the weird sketches after the middle of the show. We actually did think the movie would work for an audience because we used to get those sketches to work. Also Austin Powers, had a lot of strange comedy in it. We knew it would work to some degree but we worried it would get too odd. Its always a matter of, is it a cult hit or will it do good enough commercially so you get to do the next one? We were pretty confident that people like yourself that had been to ASSSSCAT and loved comedy would like this movie but how would we do with the mainstream audience.
DRE: What was the most difficult aspect of doing the movie?
AM: The most difficult part was just getting the movie made because before Will hit it big with Old School we had rewritten it about ten times. The second hardest part was the reshoots. We did our first test audience in Los Angeles and the movie got huge laughs. Then we got our scores and they were awful which says something about America. In the original version we killed the dog and didnt bring him back. The audiences wanted to lynch me for that so we had to go back for reshoots and we brought in the whole bear thing. Thank god we discovered the subtitle joke with Baxter so that made it work. It was rough when we got those test scores back.
DRE: So you didnt have final cut on the movie?
AM: DreamWorks never pulled rank. I wanted to do it. You dont live by test scores but when they are that dramatic you do notice them. If it was the difference between an A and C I could live with that but were talking about F here. The audience was really upset over killing the dog. We didnt mind if some people didnt like it but universal hatred was never our goal. I was happy that DreamWorks gave me the money for the reshoots but it was a pain in the ass to go back and write more pages. Ultimately it was a gift because it pulled the movie together more.
DRE: If you had killed a cat I think it would have been ok.
AM: Isnt that funny? You can kill a cat or human being and everythings fine. But if you do it to a dog, forget it.
DRE: How did your experience doing your short films on SNL help when you did the feature?
AM: I was shocked at how much it did help me. Those films were 16mm my first year then digital video after that but a film set is a film set. It was invaluable training. Also the other thing was, since Lorne [Michaels] let me do so many of them, so I got to have successes and make mistakes.
DRE: Any chance of a collection of those films?
AM: As a comedy geek I would like them but I dont know. Im just amazed they havent done a Robert Smigel collection yet so if they havent done him Im way down the line.
DRE: That still shocks me.
AM: I know Smigel and I know he wants to do it. I think they could make some money from it.
DRE: It must be that the name Robert Smigel doesnt mean enough to enough people.
AM: You might be right. They sell all this stuff off of peoples names.
DRE: They just added a second DVD of Ferrells stuff.
AM: Yeah, the second one is amazing. The first DVD they had to put stuff like the cheerleaders and the Roxbury guys. But for the second one they let Will choose much of it so its a lot crazier. Its much more in the vein of Anchorman.
DRE: How was getting interviewed by Carl Arnheiter for Inside Joke at the UCB Theatre?
AM: It was fun as hell and I had a great time. There were old friends of mine in the audience that I hadnt seen in 12 years. When the show was over they were all caught up on what Ive been doing. It couldnt have been more comfortable.
DRE: I got a chance to talk to Harry Shearer when his movie, Teddy Bears' Picnic came out. He said that if you speak to anyone thats ever been on SNL, off the record they will tell you that they hate it. What was your experience?
AM: Its funny you ask that because I just got quoted in The New York Times. I had a conversation with the guy about the pros and cons of SNLs political humor versus doing pop humor. He printed all the cons, left out the pros and made it look like I was trashing the show. I had the best frickin time on that show. I got to do everything I wanted to do such as write sketches, a little performing and the short films. I think when you hear people bitch about the show its because everyone has their own thing they want to be, but no matter what its still Lornes show. All the writers might go out on a Wednesday to have some beers and complain that their sketches werent chosen. But for most of us its our first job, we got to work on SNL and live in New York. I hate to contradict Harry Shearer, who is one of my idols, but I did not hate it.
DRE: Robert Smigel told me pretty much the same thing.
AM: The people that will go on about how much they hate the show are the ones that got fired after a year. Wasnt Shearer let go?
DRE: I think it was combination of him hating it as well.
AM: He butted heads when he was there. I was just a wide eyed goof and I had a good time. Also I started there with a good group of people. We just drank and stayed up until six in the morning.
DRE: Robert Smigel told me that he almost had the chance for Adam Sandler to be his Will Ferrell but he doesnt sound bitter.
AM: He told me that too. I remember back when that was almost an opportunity but the truth is that Smigel has always been such an independent voice. He says he regrets that but if you look at everything he was doing instead of that, its a pretty impressive list. Putting together and co-creating Late Night with Conan OBrien was a mammoth achievement. Then on top of all that, the TV Funhouse shorts on SNL, the show on Comedy Central and then Triumph which I would say is the funniest thing out there right now. Triumph and Ali G make me laugh so hard. I think hes looking at the fact that Will and I had such a good time doing Anchorman together. But I think hes done pretty frickin good. I think if he wanted to be Adam Sandlers guy Im sure Adam wouldnt mind.
Isnt the best thing about Smigel that hes such a sweetheart?
DRE: Thank god he wasnt a bad person because I would have been crushed. Hes a wonderful guy.
How was working with Smigel on the TV Funhouse cartoons you wrote?
AM: It was fun as hell. There is nothing more enjoyable than writing something then seeing it translate to a cartoon.
DRE: I actually read the comic book of the X-Presidents you all put out.
AM: That was so much fun. Since I am an old comic book geek my favorite part of that is the fake ads.
DRE: Im not fishing for any gossip but Matt Besser told me that the four Upright Citizens Brigade members [Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh] own the name Upright Citizens Brigade. How does that work out since you are a founding member?
AM: I was in the group and I left for Second City willingly. Besser asked me if I was sure I wanted to do it but Second City offered a paycheck and I was so broke. The great thing about those guys is that they always treat us like we are still members and were welcome there anytime. Even though I am not in the group anymore it is still one of the things I am most proud of.
DRE: How did you end up studying with Del Close at Second City?
AM: The reason I went to Second City in Chicago is because a buddy of mine had studied with Del Close and told me about it. I dropped out of college and moved out there. Del directed a bunch of shows and I studied with him for years. I always say that he was the one teacher that could tangibly make a difference and made me better.
DRE: I got a chance to speak with Bill Murray a few weeks ago. I asked him if the teachings of Del Close still follow him today and he told me thats its in his bones now.
AM: Id say the same thing. So many people profess to be able to teach you how to write and act but Del actually could do it. He could be rough but if you could put up with it he would at least make you ten percent better. Some people would have massive breakthroughs and become tremendous writers and actors.
Del was this larger than life character with a big white beard and he hung out with Lenny Bruce so there was an intimidation factor there. I think Del literally used to be a fencing partner to L. Ron Hubbard.
DRE: Have you ever been as tough as him?
AM: No [laughs], hes really rough.
DRE: Can you be tough when youre in the writers room?
AM: Oh definitely. If the people are professionals and somethings not working you can say something. If someone gets offended by that then its their problem. There is fine line between being a dick and being tough. If everyone is there to truly make something better then you shouldnt be touchy about it. Thats why I like working with someone like Judd or Tina Fey because these are people who want to make stuff better so there are no bruised egos. Then if someones out of line youve got to talk to them.
DRE: Could you tell me some specific sketches you wrote for SNL?
AM: Will and I wrote a lot of crazy sketches together like Wake Up and Smile where the prompter breaks down and the hosts go crazy. A lot of the Robert Goulet ones, a lot of the early Jeopardy ones and a lot of the cold opens. I was the head writer there for three years so I rewrote a lot as well but I still liked to write sketches. I was never big fan of the recurring characters. I think the only ones we had were the Bill Brasky guys. One the sketches I am most proud of is this one Will and I did where he was a really bad OB/GYN.
DRE: But you didnt co-write the cowbell sketch.
AM: I wish so badly I could claim credit for that. I think that was Will by himself. The secret about Will is that he is a kickass writer.
DRE: Are you getting a writing credit on the Bewitched movie?
AM: I dont know. They always put my name on the script. Im not expecting one but [director] Nora [Ephron] is pretty generous. I went by the set a bunch of times and saw some dailies. I think its easy to think that these TV remake movies will suck but from what Ive seen it looks good.
DRE: Did you write a draft or just rewrites?
AM: I went out to New York for like six weeks and did a rewrite with Nora. Then I did several rewrites after that, always in conjunction with her. You always think of her movies as being these light romantic comedies but lo and behold she is laugh out loud funny and has a dark sense of humor sometimes. Plus when you are with her you eat the best food on the planet.
DRE: Whats the status of Talladega Nights?
AM: Will and I have already written a draft of it and now were rewriting it. Were set to start shooting in mid-August. Its the tale of Ricky Bobby a sort of no brakes insane NASCAR driver.
DRE: Are you going to use the same process you did for Anchorman?
AM: Since its a sports movie there is a little bit more of a traditional story arc on it but otherwise yes I hope it to be the same. I think this movie will be a bit more mainstream but Im hoping the humor is exactly the same.
DRE: What happened when your first met Will Ferrell?
AM: We had never met or been introduced. We saw each other, took a long beat, walked towards each other and kissed. It was one of the weirdest things [laughs] naw. We were all hanging out and he was so normal but when we started doing bits he just blew us away. I think the first sketch we ever did with one another was the Behind the Music Neil Diamond one.
DRE: Where did you grow up?
AM: Outside Philadelphia. If you go past the rich area, it becomes this really hicky chewing tobacco land.
DRE: How did comedy get into your life?
AM: Ive just always loved comedy and its my generation. I always watched everything when I was kid like The Three Stooges, comedians on Johnny Carson, Taxi, Barney Miller and then in the 80s I started doing standup. Also I switched schools every year between kindergarten and fifth grade so I was always joking around to get over that first day of meeting new people.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
Besides the amazing talent in front of the camera behind the scenes were people like producer Judd Apatow and of course co-writer/director Adam McKay. Before Anchorman, Adam McKay was best known as one of the founding members of Upright Citizens Brigade and as head writer of Saturday Night Live for three years.
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy has just been released on DVD and you can also buy that and the second movie Wake Up, Ron Burgundy in a special double DVD gift set.
Buy the DVD of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Daniel Robert Epstein: Im a big fan of yours way from way back so its a pleasure to talk to you.
Adam McKay: Thats great. I checked out the site a couple of times and its a kick. I love it.
DRE: I actually got to see you do an ASSSSCAT at the UCB Theatre about five years ago.
AM: I havent done that in a long time.
DRE: How come?
AM: I was in town a couple of weeks ago and people were telling me to go do it but I was lazy so I didnt.
DRE: Anchorman ended up making about $95 million in the theater. That must be unbelievable for you.
AM: It is insane. Were giddy over the fact that we made that crazy-ass movie and it made a profit. It was a bonus we did not expect.
DRE: How did the idea for Anchorman come about?
AM: We had written a script for Paramount years ago about car salesmen that we couldnt get made. Will hadnt really done anything where it had just been him in movie. So we decided to write another one. Will had seen this documentary about these anchormen talking about how freaked out they were about women coming into the office. It just made us laugh so hard to hear these respectable avuncular characters going on and on about how they were freaked out by women. Will started doing an impression of one of the guys. Pre-Judd we wrote this one draft that was pretty crazy. It had the anchor team crashing a plane on a mountain and getting in fights with baboons wielding throwing stars. It was just insane. We sent it all around town and literally everyone said no to it. Then we hooked up with Judd and we rewrote it. We tamed it down a little bit as far as baboons with throwing stars.
DRE: Thats too bad.
AM: Yeah I know, it pains me because it would have been hilarious. But we still go to do some insane stuff in the movie. The movie got to DreamWorks who were always cool because they understood it. We just started rewriting with Judd and doing read-throughs. Judd is the best because he kicks our asses into rewrites. Also god bless DreamWorks because they let us do the anchor team gang fight and the animated sequence.
DRE: Judd has got a great line in Anchorman, It smells like a turd covered in burnt hair. Also right after that there is one of the most quotable lines from the movie It smells like Bigfoots dick. That sounded like someone wrote that down and told this woman to run through the scene and say that.
AM: I think that was mine. That woman is our costume designer Debra McGuire. Literally on the fly we said that we said we had to have more people saying what it smells like. I was just pulling people out of the crew telling them to say certain things. Debras teenage son and his friend were on the set that day. They just couldnt believe that his mom was saying Bigfoots dick. He was in heaven.
Actually the master of thinking up horrible smells is Paul Rudd some of which are on the DVD. He came up with That smells like the inside of a fake leg which is pretty horrific. I think they bleeped, It smells like Henry Kissingers taint, on the DVD.
DRE: You are definitely a comedy fan yourself and youre 36 so you grew up with movies like Caddyshack, Stripes and Fletch. Anchorman is on its way to becoming a classic of that nature. It gets quoted all time. Whats that like for you to have created a movie that will become a classic comedy that will get quoted?
AM: Its funny because those are the movies we were aiming for, like Airplane and Caddyshack. Those ensemble silly comedies where they didnt put too much emphasis on story and it was just about the absurdity. If it even gets near to those movies we will be giddy. This movie gets a funny reaction, people either worship it or really hate it. People will say stuff like You probably dont want to hear how much I loved it. We do want to hear it!
But also if you look at a movie like the first Austin Powers it has the same kind of lifespan. The initial reaction was kind of mixed and then it sort of grew on people once it got on DVD and cable.
DRE: I came up with a very geeky theory about Anchorman. The movies that are similar in tone are Zoolander and Austin Powers. But those movies were also parodies of genres like Manchurian Candidate and James Bond. Anchorman doesnt exactly do that. You almost parodied a period but without getting too steeped in the period aspect.
AM: Thats a strange thing thats happening with the 70s. Its almost transcended parody and has become its own style. You are able to ignore the parody and go off into your own universe. [Ghost World creator] Daniel Clowes had a funny take on it. He said he was nostalgic for the 70s nostalgia of the 50s like Happy Days and Sha Na Na. Thats almost what's happened with the 70s.
DRE: Yeah your movie isnt about the clothes or the cars.
AM: We never wanted to do that because we felt those jokes were played out. It was more about that old style guy and that proper world that wasnt proper at all.
DRE: I saw an interview with Ivan Reitman about one of his later films, Fathers Day. He said that keeping Robin Williams and Billy Crystal on the story of the movie was one of his biggest tasks which is too bad because it was the movie Fathers Day. Did you have the same sort of thing with Anchorman?
AM: We did have a story which you can see on the other movie, Wake Up, Ron Burgundy. It was this whole traditional story with these radicals called The Alarm Clock. I always knew I had that so I knew within that story we could go crazier but then we ended up cutting it. Then the movie got even more amorphous. We always knew we had enough of an arc that we could get away with doing crazy stuff. Also I really hate when the funny comedy gets all sincere in a bogus way. All of a sudden youre supposed to care about this woman loving this bizarre character. Thats why one of my favorite lines is when Christina Applegate says Im 72 percent sure I love you. Do we really buy that this woman would give herself completely to this guy?
There is a wrangler quality to it but most of it happens in the editing room. When you are on the set you try every option to get as much as you can. The editing room is where the brutal cuts happen. There you become your own worst enemy and try to make sense of it.
DRE: Was the process of this film to not say cut and just let the actors keep improvising?
AM: Always. We rolled out on the film dozens of times especially with certain people. With Will you just let the guy go, Paul Rudd is a hell of an improviser, Steve Carell is amazing and Applegate can do it as well. For Wake Up, Ron Burgundy Maya Rudolph was the improv star. We did a cameo scene with Amy Poehler and she can just go all day long.
DRE: The Amy Poehler scene is hysterical.
AM: Yeah, it pained me to cut it.
We shot so much film. You know its a good sign when halfway through shooting the film company shows up and gives you champagne. They were liking us quite a bit.
DRE: Are you as happy with Wake Up, Ron Burgundy as you are with Anchorman?
AM: It all makes me laugh but obviously Wake Up, Ron Burgundy is pretty ragged. We had to repeat some scenes from Anchorman to make it make sense. But the second half of Wake Up, Ron Burgundy does pretty well. I would say I am. I think the second half of Wake Up, Ron Burgundy is as good as anything else we did.
DRE: Were you shooting Anchorman when Elf came out?
AM: Yes.
DRE: Did things change much after Elf did so well?
AM: People want you to slam the studio but I have to say DreamWorks was very cool. They knew that Will was going to be the next big thing and they put out Old School so there was an inkling of that. When Elf came out I think what changed was that they decided to release the movie during the summer. They felt it could compete to make summer dough and they gave us a bigger advertising campaign.
DRE: Did you oversee the uncut version of Anchorman?
AM: The uncut thing is a little weird. I think everyone knows that the uncut version is a bit of a game they play because often you get it and its like two extra minutes. I think uncut applies some lascivious creative underbelly thats being let loose. The truth is this movie was never going to be rated R so we didnt shoot nude scenes. I didnt know that the uncut was as big of a deal as it is so we quickly threw in a few funny scenes that were kind of dirty and that was it. Now all of a sudden the uncut has become the definitive version. Apparently when it comes to these comedies they push the uncut version and I heard that 90 percent of the sales are for the uncut version. If I had known that I might have taken more care but there are a couple of gems in there like I shit a squirrel. In fact the dirtiest part of the uncut version is our commentary. We didnt even talk about the movie but instead we played the game, what is the dirtiest thing we can say? They ended up beeping half of what we said because it was even too dirty for the uncut version.
DRE: The audience can really tell how much fun the actors had making this movie, did you have as much fun directing?
AM: Oh yeah! I had so much goofy fun it was insane. I must have ruined a dozen takes from laughing. On the DVD there might be a couple of takes where you can see me run out of the room because Im laughing at Will. He would get me by doing five takes but then on the sixth take he would do something so unexpected. I think I had too much fun so on the next movie I have to be more stoic.
DRE: David Koechner didnt get as much press as Paul Rudd or Steve Carell but he was hysterical in the movie.
AM: Ive known David from even before Saturday Night Live. We were having a tough time casting the role of Champ Kind because you need someone who is a ball of energy. He came in to read for it but I didnt want to push him to the studio too hard because hes a friend of mine. We showed his tape to the studio and unprovoked they told us to hire him. It was great because I got to call my friend and tell him he was hired.
DRE: Will he be in your next movie?
AM: The next movie we are doing is about NASCAR drivers called Talladega Nights. I couldnt do a NASCAR movie without David Koechner in it. Hes from Kansas City and his dad used to sell turkey coops so he is from that world.
DRE: I know Steve Carell has a big career ahead of him thanks to your movie.
AM: He was so frickin good. We always knew that role was going to be a fun role to play but he just took it three levels higher. It was amazing to watch. Judd Apatow is directing Steve Carells new movie The 40 Year-Old Virgin. I just talked to him yesterday because hes out tech scouting.
DRE: Its great that guys like you really want to get behind the camera and not just hire any old director.
AM: If youre doing it right with a comedy you should be having a good time.
DRE: Did you ever think that Anchormans humor would translate to the audience?
AM: The joke I have with friends of mine at SNL. like Tina Fey. is that I say the movie is all sketches from the last half hour of SNL. Will and I used to love to do the weird sketches after the middle of the show. We actually did think the movie would work for an audience because we used to get those sketches to work. Also Austin Powers, had a lot of strange comedy in it. We knew it would work to some degree but we worried it would get too odd. Its always a matter of, is it a cult hit or will it do good enough commercially so you get to do the next one? We were pretty confident that people like yourself that had been to ASSSSCAT and loved comedy would like this movie but how would we do with the mainstream audience.
DRE: What was the most difficult aspect of doing the movie?
AM: The most difficult part was just getting the movie made because before Will hit it big with Old School we had rewritten it about ten times. The second hardest part was the reshoots. We did our first test audience in Los Angeles and the movie got huge laughs. Then we got our scores and they were awful which says something about America. In the original version we killed the dog and didnt bring him back. The audiences wanted to lynch me for that so we had to go back for reshoots and we brought in the whole bear thing. Thank god we discovered the subtitle joke with Baxter so that made it work. It was rough when we got those test scores back.
DRE: So you didnt have final cut on the movie?
AM: DreamWorks never pulled rank. I wanted to do it. You dont live by test scores but when they are that dramatic you do notice them. If it was the difference between an A and C I could live with that but were talking about F here. The audience was really upset over killing the dog. We didnt mind if some people didnt like it but universal hatred was never our goal. I was happy that DreamWorks gave me the money for the reshoots but it was a pain in the ass to go back and write more pages. Ultimately it was a gift because it pulled the movie together more.
DRE: If you had killed a cat I think it would have been ok.
AM: Isnt that funny? You can kill a cat or human being and everythings fine. But if you do it to a dog, forget it.
DRE: How did your experience doing your short films on SNL help when you did the feature?
AM: I was shocked at how much it did help me. Those films were 16mm my first year then digital video after that but a film set is a film set. It was invaluable training. Also the other thing was, since Lorne [Michaels] let me do so many of them, so I got to have successes and make mistakes.
DRE: Any chance of a collection of those films?
AM: As a comedy geek I would like them but I dont know. Im just amazed they havent done a Robert Smigel collection yet so if they havent done him Im way down the line.
DRE: That still shocks me.
AM: I know Smigel and I know he wants to do it. I think they could make some money from it.
DRE: It must be that the name Robert Smigel doesnt mean enough to enough people.
AM: You might be right. They sell all this stuff off of peoples names.
DRE: They just added a second DVD of Ferrells stuff.
AM: Yeah, the second one is amazing. The first DVD they had to put stuff like the cheerleaders and the Roxbury guys. But for the second one they let Will choose much of it so its a lot crazier. Its much more in the vein of Anchorman.
DRE: How was getting interviewed by Carl Arnheiter for Inside Joke at the UCB Theatre?
AM: It was fun as hell and I had a great time. There were old friends of mine in the audience that I hadnt seen in 12 years. When the show was over they were all caught up on what Ive been doing. It couldnt have been more comfortable.
DRE: I got a chance to talk to Harry Shearer when his movie, Teddy Bears' Picnic came out. He said that if you speak to anyone thats ever been on SNL, off the record they will tell you that they hate it. What was your experience?
AM: Its funny you ask that because I just got quoted in The New York Times. I had a conversation with the guy about the pros and cons of SNLs political humor versus doing pop humor. He printed all the cons, left out the pros and made it look like I was trashing the show. I had the best frickin time on that show. I got to do everything I wanted to do such as write sketches, a little performing and the short films. I think when you hear people bitch about the show its because everyone has their own thing they want to be, but no matter what its still Lornes show. All the writers might go out on a Wednesday to have some beers and complain that their sketches werent chosen. But for most of us its our first job, we got to work on SNL and live in New York. I hate to contradict Harry Shearer, who is one of my idols, but I did not hate it.
DRE: Robert Smigel told me pretty much the same thing.
AM: The people that will go on about how much they hate the show are the ones that got fired after a year. Wasnt Shearer let go?
DRE: I think it was combination of him hating it as well.
AM: He butted heads when he was there. I was just a wide eyed goof and I had a good time. Also I started there with a good group of people. We just drank and stayed up until six in the morning.
DRE: Robert Smigel told me that he almost had the chance for Adam Sandler to be his Will Ferrell but he doesnt sound bitter.
AM: He told me that too. I remember back when that was almost an opportunity but the truth is that Smigel has always been such an independent voice. He says he regrets that but if you look at everything he was doing instead of that, its a pretty impressive list. Putting together and co-creating Late Night with Conan OBrien was a mammoth achievement. Then on top of all that, the TV Funhouse shorts on SNL, the show on Comedy Central and then Triumph which I would say is the funniest thing out there right now. Triumph and Ali G make me laugh so hard. I think hes looking at the fact that Will and I had such a good time doing Anchorman together. But I think hes done pretty frickin good. I think if he wanted to be Adam Sandlers guy Im sure Adam wouldnt mind.
Isnt the best thing about Smigel that hes such a sweetheart?
DRE: Thank god he wasnt a bad person because I would have been crushed. Hes a wonderful guy.
How was working with Smigel on the TV Funhouse cartoons you wrote?
AM: It was fun as hell. There is nothing more enjoyable than writing something then seeing it translate to a cartoon.
DRE: I actually read the comic book of the X-Presidents you all put out.
AM: That was so much fun. Since I am an old comic book geek my favorite part of that is the fake ads.
DRE: Im not fishing for any gossip but Matt Besser told me that the four Upright Citizens Brigade members [Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh] own the name Upright Citizens Brigade. How does that work out since you are a founding member?
AM: I was in the group and I left for Second City willingly. Besser asked me if I was sure I wanted to do it but Second City offered a paycheck and I was so broke. The great thing about those guys is that they always treat us like we are still members and were welcome there anytime. Even though I am not in the group anymore it is still one of the things I am most proud of.
DRE: How did you end up studying with Del Close at Second City?
AM: The reason I went to Second City in Chicago is because a buddy of mine had studied with Del Close and told me about it. I dropped out of college and moved out there. Del directed a bunch of shows and I studied with him for years. I always say that he was the one teacher that could tangibly make a difference and made me better.
DRE: I got a chance to speak with Bill Murray a few weeks ago. I asked him if the teachings of Del Close still follow him today and he told me thats its in his bones now.
AM: Id say the same thing. So many people profess to be able to teach you how to write and act but Del actually could do it. He could be rough but if you could put up with it he would at least make you ten percent better. Some people would have massive breakthroughs and become tremendous writers and actors.
Del was this larger than life character with a big white beard and he hung out with Lenny Bruce so there was an intimidation factor there. I think Del literally used to be a fencing partner to L. Ron Hubbard.
DRE: Have you ever been as tough as him?
AM: No [laughs], hes really rough.
DRE: Can you be tough when youre in the writers room?
AM: Oh definitely. If the people are professionals and somethings not working you can say something. If someone gets offended by that then its their problem. There is fine line between being a dick and being tough. If everyone is there to truly make something better then you shouldnt be touchy about it. Thats why I like working with someone like Judd or Tina Fey because these are people who want to make stuff better so there are no bruised egos. Then if someones out of line youve got to talk to them.
DRE: Could you tell me some specific sketches you wrote for SNL?
AM: Will and I wrote a lot of crazy sketches together like Wake Up and Smile where the prompter breaks down and the hosts go crazy. A lot of the Robert Goulet ones, a lot of the early Jeopardy ones and a lot of the cold opens. I was the head writer there for three years so I rewrote a lot as well but I still liked to write sketches. I was never big fan of the recurring characters. I think the only ones we had were the Bill Brasky guys. One the sketches I am most proud of is this one Will and I did where he was a really bad OB/GYN.
DRE: But you didnt co-write the cowbell sketch.
AM: I wish so badly I could claim credit for that. I think that was Will by himself. The secret about Will is that he is a kickass writer.
DRE: Are you getting a writing credit on the Bewitched movie?
AM: I dont know. They always put my name on the script. Im not expecting one but [director] Nora [Ephron] is pretty generous. I went by the set a bunch of times and saw some dailies. I think its easy to think that these TV remake movies will suck but from what Ive seen it looks good.
DRE: Did you write a draft or just rewrites?
AM: I went out to New York for like six weeks and did a rewrite with Nora. Then I did several rewrites after that, always in conjunction with her. You always think of her movies as being these light romantic comedies but lo and behold she is laugh out loud funny and has a dark sense of humor sometimes. Plus when you are with her you eat the best food on the planet.
DRE: Whats the status of Talladega Nights?
AM: Will and I have already written a draft of it and now were rewriting it. Were set to start shooting in mid-August. Its the tale of Ricky Bobby a sort of no brakes insane NASCAR driver.
DRE: Are you going to use the same process you did for Anchorman?
AM: Since its a sports movie there is a little bit more of a traditional story arc on it but otherwise yes I hope it to be the same. I think this movie will be a bit more mainstream but Im hoping the humor is exactly the same.
DRE: What happened when your first met Will Ferrell?
AM: We had never met or been introduced. We saw each other, took a long beat, walked towards each other and kissed. It was one of the weirdest things [laughs] naw. We were all hanging out and he was so normal but when we started doing bits he just blew us away. I think the first sketch we ever did with one another was the Behind the Music Neil Diamond one.
DRE: Where did you grow up?
AM: Outside Philadelphia. If you go past the rich area, it becomes this really hicky chewing tobacco land.
DRE: How did comedy get into your life?
AM: Ive just always loved comedy and its my generation. I always watched everything when I was kid like The Three Stooges, comedians on Johnny Carson, Taxi, Barney Miller and then in the 80s I started doing standup. Also I switched schools every year between kindergarten and fifth grade so I was always joking around to get over that first day of meeting new people.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 24 of 24 COMMENTS
dannydmc:
Easily one of yhe funniest movies I've seen in years. The massive brawl ws great, and Correll did an amazing job. A classic!
luckyride:
great interview. i love that dude.