When it comes to modern Christmas classics, you can’t typically go wrong with suggesting the family sit around and enjoy “Elf.” The Will Ferrell comedy film was a massive success when it first hit theaters and has seemingly shot up the ranks of Christmas films, putting it shoulder-to-shoulder with “A Christmas Story,” “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” and even “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” This all makes it so surprising that 2003’s “Elf” was never given a sequel, which is also a time-honored Christmas film tradition. Well, apparently a sequel was written and ready to go, but Ferrell himself derailed the project.
According to a new profile at THR, Will Ferrell was offered a chance to come back as Buddy the Elf in “Elf 2,” but the actor stepped away from the project. However, he didn’t step away from “Elf 2” because of a contract dispute or anything like that. It is revealed that Ferrell was offered $29 million to reprise his role, in fact. Instead, the actor left the project over a script that he didn’t think was worth making.
“I would have had to promote the movie from an honest place, which would’ve been, like, ‘Oh no, it’s not good. I just couldn’t turn down that much money,’” explained Ferrell. “And I thought, ‘Can I actually say those words? I don’t think I can, so I guess I can’t do the movie.’”
2003’s “Elf” stars Ferrell alongside a relatively unknown at the time, Zooey Deschanel. The film is directed by Jon Favreau, and it really served as the breakout hit for the filmmaker, who only five years later would go on to release “Iron Man” and kickstart the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Ferrell, of course, is no stranger to sequels, having starred in sequels for “Anchorman,” “Zoolander,” and “Daddy’s Home.” It’s just clear from the above comment, Ferrell is never after the easy money and does have the artistic integrity to walk away if he wasn’t happy with the product.
You can see Will Ferrell next in the Apple TV+ series, “The Shrink Next Door,” which hits the streaming service on November 12.