By Tendayi Moyo
Some feared the fabled news anchor Ron Burgundy and the legendary Channel 4 news team had descended into obscurity. Though in a display of remarkable resilience, the news team from the cult classic will once again grace the silver screen.
After thousands of minutes of anticipation, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is set to hit theatres in Canada on Dec. 18. Making the move from local news in San Diego, the news team is moving to the Big Apple to establish a 24-hour news channel.
The original movie was released almost a decade ago and raked in over $90 million in box office sales worldwide.
Set in 1970’s San Diego, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy told the tale of renowned news anchor Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) and his faithful news team. When the station looked to diversify by adding a female journalist to the team (Christina Applegate as Veronica Corningstone), hilarity ensues. Spoiler alert: Burgundy saves the day and gets the girl.
The question that necessarily comes to mind is whether the sequel will be able to surprise its loyal followers. Paul Rudd, who is back as Brian Fantana, says that most of the movie has been kept shrouded in mystery for this very reason.
“I want people to have questions going into this,” Rudd says. “I want people to feel about this the way they feel about Lost in Translation, in a way. It’s like, remember, when Scarlett Johansson whispered into his ear and no one knows what she said? I want that level of frustration.”
Those who may be concerned about the dreaded cast turnover associated with sequels need not fret. The original news team reassembled in its entirety for the filming of the sequel with Adam McKay back as director. The film is also rumoured to feature cameos from comedic greats like Tina Fey, Jim Carrey and Amy Poehler.
Steve Carell, playing celebrated dimwit Brick Tamland, spoke to how they were able to gather so much talent.
“I think people were sort of calling [McKay and Ferrell] to get into the movie. I don’t think there was much arm-bending to get people in,” Carell says. “And I think it was the same on the first one. You know, all those cameos that we had and the big fight scene in the first one — people just wanted to be a part of the silliness. So I think the same holds true for this one.”
With much of the main cast experiencing a ton of success since the original film’s release in 2004, Rudd explained why he decided to revisit Anchorman.
“For me, mainly, it was working with these guys again who I love,” Rudd says. “It was such a blast doing the first one that I would jump at the chance to come back and beat a dead horse.”
As the highly anticipated release approaches, Anchorman fans have likely watched every trailer and teaser that Paramount has released. With that in mind, Carell insisted the film has much more to offer.
“There’s so much more. You know, you look at the trailer and you think, wow, they put everything in that they could and that’s the entire movie. But there’s so much more than is in the trailer. I’m kind of psyched about the whole thing,” Carell says.
Not for the easily offended, Anchorman 2 promises to tackle issues of race, gender, sexuality and barrel-aged scotch. If you’re looking for an amusing holiday flick, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues should do the trick.