Top 10 Will Ferrell Movies

Ferrell co-wrote this hilarious movie with his Anchorman partner, director Adam McKay. There are rumors that the script was intended for real kids but that some genius thought to cast Ferrell himself in it. I had long been a John C. Reilly fan and the pairing of the two of them brings out the best in each of them.

It’s widely accepted that Will Ferrell stole the whole film in his role as Frank “The Tank” Ricard. For some reason, Old School didn’t enjoy quite the same popularity as some of Ferrell’s other films, but it is easily one of his best performances. I was devastated to learn that a sequel was actually written in 2006, but that Ferrell and his co-stars decided against it. I’d pay good money to see Frank streaking down the road just one more time.

I first saw Anchorman 3 years after its release, and immediately leapt onto the bandwagon. It’s hilarious from start to finish, and gets more so with every viewing. Will Ferrell is an absolute giant in the title role, but it also helped to spark the movie careers of some of America’s finest comedians, most notably Steve Carell. Believe it or not, I actually own a bottle of sex panther cologne – 60% of the time, it works every time.

“Elf” is Will Ferrell’s biggest grossing film to date, taking over $170m at the US box office alone which is incredible for a comedy. Directed by John Favreau (who I’ll always remember as Monica’s Ultimate Fighter millionaire boyfriend in Friends), Ferrell plays a human brought up by Santa’s elves in the North Pole. The movie charts his adventures in New York City, and his emotional quest to be reunited with his father. I’m a sucker for gentle comedy and anything with Christmas in it, so “Elf” is a real favourite of mine.

This is a Marmite film. Personally, I don’t care for it very much. I can only tolerate so much “Blue Steel” and “Ferrari”. But Will Ferrell produces yet another show-stealing performance as the fashion mogul Jacobim Mugatu. He inhabits the character completely, and is every inch the self-interested prima donna that we all imagine fashion designers to be. He hilariously screams at a stick-thin model, “Do me a favour and lose five pounds immediately, or get out of my building like now!”

By the time “Blades of Glory” came out in 2007, Will Ferrell was already one of the most popular comedy actors around. Here we saw him team up with Jon Heder (a.k.a. Napoleon Dynamite) in a buddy comedy about male figure skating. Not an obvious plot, but Ferrell oozes charisma and has pinpoint comic timing, so it’s almost impossible for him to deliver a turkey. This isn’t the funniest film in the world, but Ferrell gives another flawless comic performance, and manages to elevate an otherwise mediocre comedy.

Audiences get used to seeing actors in certain roles, and seldom warm to them in unfamiliar territory. In “Stranger Than Fiction” Will Ferrell drifts as close to playing the straight man as he’s able to, and he pulls it off in magnificent style. It wasn’t a huge commercial success, but its heart-warming story is beautifully directed by Mark Forster, and features some heavyweight actors in supporting roles, including Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Ferrell, as expected, more than holds his own.

Will Ferrell really hit the big time with this one, grossing nearly $150m at the US box office. He also co-wrote and produced it with long-time collaborator Adam McKay, so this film, perhaps more than any other, has Will Ferrell’s stamp all over it. It’s precisely what you want from one of his films – goofy, a little bit sentimental, but most importantly wet-your-pants funny. “Shake and bake.”

After Elf, this was Ferrell’s true breakout movie that secured his place on the A-list. Who can forget his portrayal of anchorman Ron Burgundy engaged in the battle of the sexes with Christina Applegate?