The subject of Anchorman 2 has been bouncing around Hollywood for years, but it was just a few weeks ago that Ron Burgundy himself, Will Ferrell, appeared in character on Conan to announce that he and Paramount had reached a deal to bring the suave San Diego newsman back for a sequel.
Today, we have Anchorman director – and frequent Will Ferrell collaborator – Adam McKay talking about the sequel film, with a few hints about what’s in store for Ron and the Channel 4 News Team’s new adventure.
Speaking with Salon, McKay (Talladega Nights, Step Brothers, The Other Guys) first describes why such a long gap exists between Anchorman and Anchorman 2:
Well, first off, we went and did some other movies; that was the initial delay. By the time we heard from enough fans and heard enough of the demand for a sequel, it had been a few years. We went to the studio and they kind of weren’t into it initially. They said the original one made pretty good money, but for what it made we’ll give you this and this, and it was a very low budget. We would have all been working for free to do it.
We were playing with the idea of doing “Stepbrothers 2″ or another original movie. And just at the last second I said, go check in with them again and see if it’s just 100 percent dead. And, crazy luck, a movie had fallen through for them, their view on it had kind of changed and that was it.
Regarding how the modern media is now even more of a reflection of all that Anchorman sought to mock:
Part of what inspired the movie was just how ridiculous the news had become. It was all ratings driven. The people were getting better and better looking. The weather women were getting outrageously beautiful. It was all about the voice and the hair.
Since we made the movie it’s gone even more so in that direction. We talk about all these anchormen on the air now and they’re all kind of Ron Burgundy-esque guys. So yes, sadly, the character has gotten more and more relevant as the news has gotten to be nothing more than a ratings-driven profit machine…The ridiculousness of “Anchorman” got less and less observed.
In regards to what Anchorman 2 might be about:
I don’t want to give away too much, but I’ll just give a couple pieces of ideas that we’ve kicked around. Keep in mind we’re still writing the story, but I’ll say one phrase for you: custody battle. I’ll give you that. I’ll give you one other one: bowling for dollars.
Personally, I tend to use Anchorman as my personal barometer for where people’s comedic sensibilities lie. I thought the movie was hilarious the very first time I saw it; others were brought in by home video / cable viewings of the film. Since that time, The Legend of Ron Burgundy has grown to be, well, “legendary” (at least in a cult-following sort of way). I welcome a sequel with open arms, and truly hope that early reports that the setting will be moved up to the 1980s era are true – there is so much skewering of that era still to be done.
We’ll keep you updated on the status of Anchorman 2.
