Buddy the Elf is back…although not as anyone could have imagined. Will Ferrell unexpectedly dressed up as his famous character in Jon Favreau’s 2003 Christmas comedy “Elf” while attending the Dec. 29 hockey game between the Los Angeles Kings and Philadelphia Flyers. Only this iteration of Buddy looked completely disheveled with a five o’clock shadow and a fake cigarette in his mouth.
Ferrell is a Los Angeles Kings fan and regularly attends their games, but never as Buddy the Elf. FanDuel Sports Network anchor Carlene Bath reported live on the game and spoke to Buddy, who told her it was “a tough offseason” and “he’s looking for a Kings win.”
“Elf,” which grossed more than $220 million at the worldwide box office at the time of its release and remains a Christmas classic, stars Ferrell as a human raised by Santa’s elves. He travels to New York City to meet his biological father, played by James Caan. Ferrell revealed during an interview on the “Messy” podcast earlier this year that Cahn wasn’t originally a fan of his performance.
“James Caan, may he rest in peace, we had a great time working on this movie,” Ferrell said. “He’ll tease me. I like doing little things but I don’t like being ‘on’ all the time. In between setups, (he) would say: ‘I don’t understand you.’ You’re not funny. And I’d say: ‘I know. I’m not Robin Williams.’ And he’d say: ‘” People ask me: “Is it funny?” And I’m like, “No, it’s not funny.” It was all with love but at the same time…
But he changed his mind after seeing the final clip of “Elf” at the film’s premiere. “He was like, ‘I gotta tell you: I thought everything you were doing during filming was so over-the-top.’ “Now that I see it in the movie, it’s amazing,” Ferrell recalls.
Ferrell previously revealed that he once turned down a $29 million offer to star in the “Elf” sequel.
“I had to promote the movie from an honest place, which would have been like, ‘Oh no, it’s not good.’ “I couldn’t turn down that kind of money,” Ferrell said of the simple decision to turn down “Elf 2.” “And I thought: Can I actually say those words? “I don’t think I can, so I guess I can’t do the movie.”
Who knows where Buddy the Elf will appear next? The Los Angeles Kings will next play the New Jersey Devils on January 1.