Zac Efron and Will Ferrell will star together in a new comedy from the director of Neighbors (2014). Ferrell continues to be one of the biggest names in the world of comedy, and he is best known for films like Elf (2004), Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), and Step Brothers (2008). Ferrell most recently starred in Prime Video comedy You’re Cordially Invited opposite Reese Witherspoon, but he also voiced Maxime in last year’s Despicable Me 4.
THR now reports that Efron has joined Ferrell in an untitled comedy film from Amazon MGM Studios. Nicholas Stoller wrote the script, which was once called Judgment Day, and will direct, marking another collaboration between him and Ferrell after You’re Cordially Invited, which Stoller also directed. The film is currently in development and doesn’t yet have a release date or expected production start date. It will mark the third collaboration for Efron and Stoller after Neighbors and its sequel. The logline for the movie is included below:
The story follows a young convict [played by Efron] fresh out of prison who takes a reality TV courtroom hostage, blaming the megalomaniac TV judge, played by Ferrell, for a past ruling that the convict feels ruined his life.
What The New Comedy Means For Will Ferrell & Zac Efron
Stoller Has An Impressive Comedy Filmography
You’re Cordially Invited reviews have been mixed from critics, and the film currently has a 46% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The audience score is even lower at only 36%. Previous Stoller films, however, have fared much better with critics, with highlights including Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), Get Him to the Greek (2010), and The Five-Year Engagement (2012). Both Neighbors movies were also generally well-received.
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The new comedy, then, is seemingly in good hands. The film will serve in another in a long line of comedies for Ferrell, but Efron has recently been exploring a range of other genres. Efron, for example, recently starred in the intensely dramatic The Iron Claw, as well as The Greatest Beer Run Ever (2022), a period war film, and Firestarter (2020), a horror movie. Stoller’s next movie will serve as the first time Ferrell and Efron have worked together.
Our Take On Zac Efron & Will Ferrrell’s New Comedy
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Even though You’re Cordially Invited may not have totally struck a chord with audiences, Stoller has previously directed a number of comedies that managed to deliver plenty of laughs while also offering up strong emotional storylines. The premise for Stoller’s new movie makes clear that it’s not a romantic comedy, meaning it may not have the emotion of films like Forgetting Sarah Marshall or The Five-Year Engagement, but Stoller clearly has an ability to make sure that there is character depth behind the laughs.
Stoller also recently directed the well-reviewed Bros, which was the first gay romantic comedy from a major studio.
The role of an over-the-top reality TV show judge sounds like a perfect character for Ferrell’s comedic sensibilities, and it will hopefully give him the opportunity to deliver plenty of the kinds of wacky moments he has become known for. With Efron playing the convict character, the upcoming comedy already has the ingredients for success. It’s possible that more casting announcements for the movie aren’t far off.
Source: THR