Will Ferrell takes a break from big budget comedies to star in the indie drama, Everything Must Go for writer/director Dan Rush. Everything Must Go is based on the short story by Raymond Carver and finds Ferrell playing an alcoholic who falls off the wagon, gets fired from his job, and comes home only to find his wife has put all of his possessions on the front lawn - and changed the locks. With all of his worldly goods now on public display and nowhere to go, he decides the best option is to hold a yard sale.
Everything Must Go has its lighter moments, but Ferrell didn't push for them. Instead, he and writer/director Rush let the comedy happen only when it came naturally to the scene. And in LA to discuss the film, Ferrell talked about the tone, portraying alcoholism without making it a joke, and his own yard sale experiences. Ferrell also provided a brief update on the sequels to Anchorman and Zoolander.
Will Ferrell Everything Must Go Press Conference
There are touches of darkness in this character and in Deangelo on The Office. Are we witnessing a dark period in your career?
Will Ferrell: "My blue period? Yes, officially. No, it's just a happy coincidence. Deangelo is pretend dark, though, and Nick is real life dark."
Deangelo doesn't really want to hear about anything.
Will Ferrell: "That was a really funny turn in the script where he goes from being so affable to all of a sudden, 'Please shut up.'"
Are you looking for characters in general that are darker?
Will Ferrell: "No. I mean The Office, I just left it up to that writing staff to create whatever they wanted to create, and that's kind of what they chose. And in terms of Everything Must Go, this whole process happened probably two years ago when I first met Dan [Rush] and read the script. And regardless of whether it was darker or this or that, it would just such a unique project and a new challenge for me, and something I really wanted to try."
How did you work on the chemistry with Christopher Jordan Wallace?
Will Ferrell: "Christopher and I spent three weeks together in the Grand Canyon. [Laughing] We took a mule trip down to the bottom, no guides. At one point I left [him] there for about a week. I said I would come back, but it turns out it was longer. So that's where most of our bonding took place. No, I mean, I think that's really a credit to actually how good CJ is because we didn't have a ton of time together before we started filming. We didn't really have the luxury. We rehearsed a little bit, but that's kind of what we saw in auditioning with Christopher is that it seemed like he already was so grounded and mature in a way that would help us, because a lot of the scenes that you see in the film were maybe three or four or five takes at the most. We didn't have the luxury of time or film stock, and [we had] all these forces going against us that we just had to make sure that we had someone who felt like they could kind of start at level 10 on take 1. And Christopher could do that."
What kind of challenge was it to play alcoholism realistically?
Will Ferrell: "I'm getting asked the question: were there moments where you were tempted to make them 'funny'? You know, I don't think you can sit down and begin to read a piece of material like this and start earmarking it with, 'Awww, this would be funny. I should barf on myself here. That would spice that up.' It's evident from the beginning what the tone's going to be, and that's where you put your mind. You think of it as a serious piece. And on the playing of drunk, we were very cognizant of avoiding having any false moments. We didn't want the comedy to come...we wanted it just to happen organically and never feel forced or pushed."
Did you do any real world research on going to yard sales?
Will Ferrell: "I remember going with my mom to random garage sales as a kid and thinking what a cool treasure hunt that whole world was, only to transition as an adult to think, 'What a gross place a yard sale really is, if you think about it.'"
Is there an item you can't let go of?
Will Ferrell: "Probably my speedboat. That's my baby. I don't know, that's a tough question. I probably would never part with my ESPYs. They're treasured."
How would you describe the relationship between your character and Rebecca Hall's character?
Will Ferrell: "You know, that was another thing that I loved about the script was that here was this relationship that in a more typical Hollywood movie they'd fall in love. And it feels like it's maybe getting to that edge, and then in a very real way it doesn't ever cross that line. It almost is symbolic of that dance at the end of the film. It really is a dance that they're kind of consoling each other, helping each other, and being kind of critical of each other too. And yet they don't cross that line of intimacy, and yet there's something going on between them. I just thought that was really kind of masterfully done on a script level, and then we tried to be true to that."
What's up next for you and can you talk about sequels to Anchorman and Zoolander?
Will Ferrell: "Well, what's next for me specifically is I'm going to shoot a movie in the fall [called Southern Rivals] with Zach Galifianakis where we're kind of rival Southern politicians in a small congressional district in South Carolina that we'll release for the election season next year. It kind of comments on the circus that is now modern day politics. And Zoolander 2 I don't know anything about."
And Anchorman 2?
Will Ferrell: "Anchorman 2, you really have to assert some sort of email hate campaign to Paramount Pictures because they have told us 'they've run the numbers and it's not a good fit.'"
Was it intended to be a musical?
Will Ferrell: "Yeah, that was our idea. Yeah. We were going to actually do almost a reverse, almost like the way the Marx brothers used to do. We were going to do a Broadway musical and then have a film come out after the stage show. And everyone that we tell the idea loves it, except for the studio that owns the rights. So, the ball's in their court. But they're being idiots."
What funny stuff can we expect from your character arc on The Office?
Will Ferrell: "As bad a boss as Michael Scott seemed at times, my character is 10 times worse. He's a terrible sales person and he's oddly conceited at times."
What do you think about the upcoming guest stars for the end of this season?
Will Ferrell: "I think it’s really a credit to Steve that everyone wants to be a part of this storytelling. I thought the episode [that aired April 28] was so well done. That was the show at its best in terms of being funny, being poignant. I think he’s been nominated every year for an Emmy and hasn’t won it. If he doesn’t win this year, it’s kind of a travesty. But if I win, it would be less. But no, I hope he wins. He really should. He’s so good."
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Everything Must Go hits theaters on May 13, 2011.
