Ryan Gosling and Will Ferrell will star in ‘Tough Guys.’
They’ll play henchmen who want to change their lives.
Amazon MGM Studios is backing the movie.
Ryan Gosling and Will Ferrell clearly like starring in movies that feature the word ‘Guys’ in the title. Gosling was co-lead on ‘The Nice Guys’, Ferrell was part of ‘The Other Guys’ and now the duo is looking to team up on ‘The Tough Guys’.
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The actors, who previously shared the screen in Greta Gerwig’s blockbuster smash ‘Barbie’ (Gosling as Ken, with Ferrell playing the blustery boss of Mattel), are set to reunite for the new action comedy from Amazon MGM Studios.
‘Star Wars: Starfighter’s Ryan Gosling at Star Wars Celebration 2025. Photo: Lucasfilm.
The movie originated as a spec script by ‘Workin’ Moms’ veteran writer Daniel Gold.
‘The Tough Guys’ story reportedly follows two henchmen who are tired of being disposable and break free from the criminal underworld, rewriting the rules as they build a new life on their own terms.
Deadline mentions that there is no filmmaker attached to the movie yet, but given the star power interested, you know Amazon MGM will want to get this one moving.
Where else can we see Ryan Gosling and Will Ferrell?
Ryan Gosling in ‘Project Hail Mary’. Photo: Amazon MGM Studios.
Ferrell is coming off the success of another Amazon MGM movie, wedding clash comedy ‘You’re Cordially Invited’. And he recently worked with the company again on ‘Judgment Day’, starring opposite Zac Efron in the story of a newly released prisoner (Efron) who takes over a TV courtroom, holding hostages while confronting the egotistical judge (Ferrell) whose previous verdict he believes destroyed his life.
He also has a variety of projects in development.
As for Gosling, he’ll next be seen in Amazon MGM’s sci-fi pic ‘Project Hail Mary’ and is sticking with outer space for the lead role in Shawn Levy’s ‘Star Wars: Starfighter’, which should have its cameras rolling later this year.
When will ‘The Tough Guys’ be on our screens?
With no director aboard yet, and even with the new star power, this could end up waiting a while –– especially given the actors’ busy schedule.
Zac Efron and Will Ferrell are teaming up for a new comedy.
It’ll see a newly released convict take hostages.
This marks a reunion for Ferrell and his ‘You’re Cordially Invited’ director Nicholas Stoller.
Writer/director Nicholas Stoller recently brought Will Ferrell back to our screens with new wedding-themed comedy movie ‘You’re Cordially Invited,’ which co-starred Reese Witherspoon in the story of warring nuptial groups.
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Sent directly to Prime Video, it’s currently the most-watched movie worldwide on the service, so you can certainly see why Amazon MGM Studios might want to have the actor and filmmaker team back up again for another comedy outing.
And according to Deadline, that’s exactly what is happening, as Stoller is preparing to make new movie starring Ferrell.
But wait! That’s not all… There’s another reunion in the works for this one, as Zac Efron –– who previously starred for the writer/director in 2014’s ‘Neighbors’ and its 2016 sequel ‘Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising’ –– is also aboard.
While we don’t yet know the title for the movie (the IMDb reports it as ‘Judgement Day’, but perhaps that couldn’t be cleared) the basic logline is out there: Efron plays a young convict fresh out of prison who takes a reality TV courtroom hostage.
His real beef is with the megalomaniac TV judge (Ferrell) for a past ruling that the convict feels ruined his life.
So… yes, we can imagine a blend of reality justice parody (think a twist on ‘Judge Judy’ or ‘Hot Bench’ and the sort of wacky comedy Stoller is known for. That, and a dollop of heart at the core.
What else is Zac Efron working on?
(L to R) Jermaine Fowler, Zac Efron and Andrew Santino in ‘Ricky Stanicky.’ Photo: Amazon MGM Studios.
Efron, who also appeared in Amazon’s ‘Ricky Stanicky,’ recently finished work on ‘Famous,’ director Jody Hill’s latest film.
It’s described a provocative Los Angeles-set thriller that explores the dark side of celebrity. Efron plays both an overzealous fan, Lance Dunkquist, and a Hollywood heartthrob, James Jansen.
The movie is based on the novel by bestselling author Blake Crouch and is adapted for the screen by Chad Hodge, who previously turned Crouch’s ‘Wayward Pines’ trilogy into a series.
Elsewhere, Efron appeared in last year’s ‘A Family Affair’ opposite Nicole Kidman and Joey King and is developing a new TV series called ‘Killing Zac Efron,’ in which he ventures deep into the jungles of a remote, dangerous island to carve his own name in expedition history.
And he’ll show up playing himself in at least one episode of new Seth Rogen-starring Apple TV+ comedy ‘The Studio,’ which finds Rogen playing a studio executive who is promoted to head of the company and must now face the challenge of balancing commercial expectations with his own wish to create arty indie movies.
Fun fact: that series also features a cameo by one Nicholas Stoller, also playing himself.
Aside from ‘You’re Cordially Invited,’ Ferrell most recently appeared in Netflix documentary ‘Will & Harper,’ which has been winning awards but was snubbed for contention at the Oscars.
He has a variety of projects in development as both an actor and producer, including TV series ‘Totally Spies!’ a new Gus Van Sant comedy movie called ‘Prince of Fashion’ and ‘Street Justice’, in which he’ll play a vigilante character dispensing justice outside the law.
Then there’s ‘Playing POTUS,’ a new documentary from ‘Will & Harper’ director Josh Greenbaum, which talks to actors who have played the President on screen (Ferrell famously impersonated George W. Bush on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and for the play ‘You’re Welcome America: A Final Night with George W. Bush.’
Stoller, whose credits also include ‘The Five-Year Engagement’ and ‘The Muppets,’ is the writer and producer of a new adaptation of George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm,’ which boasts Andy Serkis as director (less chance for comedy in that one).
He also has a long list of projects at various stages of development including a take on ‘Peter Pan’s Tinker Bell and a comedy that would pair Ferrell with Jason Momoa.
When will the new comedy hit screens?
Despite the star names attached, the new movie is still at the pre-production stage, so Amazon MGM studios has yet to confirm when it might be released.
Also still to gleaned is where it’ll premiere: ‘You’re Cordially Invited’ went directly to Prime Video, so perhaps this latest comedy is headed down the same route?
(L to R) Joey King and Zac Efron talk ‘A Family Affair’.
Back in 2009, Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway starred in ‘Bride Wars’ as two friends preparing to get married who discover that their nuptials have been double booked into the same venue.
Stoller’s film takes that concept and uses it instead to explore the wider idea of families with issues they have to work out instead of just two people and their respective betrothed.
But ‘Bride Wars’ is not the only existing film that this new one appears to borrow from like a cinematic magpie –– there are elements of ‘Wedding Crashers,’ ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ and more all in the mix.
Stoller has been working as both writer and director on his movies for a while now, so he’s fully responsible for all that works… And what doesn’t.
The storyline for this one feels fairly basic but delves into some deeper issues. Will Ferrell’s Jim is a single dad who lost his wife years ago to illness, and he’s a little too doting on daughter Jenni (Geraldine Viswanathan), who returns from college and announces that she’s getting married.
Then we have Reese Witherspoon as Margot, an LA-based reality show super-producer whose younger sister Neve (Meredith Hagner), she considers the only part of her Southern family truly worth engaging with.
When Jim attempts to book the island locale where he got married by phone, he thinks all is well –– except the elderly inn manager’s pen doesn’t work and then she keels over dead after putting the handset down. Margot, meanwhile, gets the manager’s grandson Leslie (Jack McBrayer), who fills her details in and processes her credit card.
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So the scene is set for both families to show up on the same weekend and chaos to follow –– while the parties initial agree to share, things quickly escalate to farcical levels.
Trouble is, while Stoller tries to weave in more emotional layers –– Jim about his wife, Margot about her family drama –– little of that sits well with the wackiness of Jim wrestling an alligator or one of Margot’s family dressing as the zebra from the singing competition series she produces to destroy the wedding cake Jim so lovingly baked for Jenni’s ceremony.
Tone whiplash is very real for this one –– it’s a lot to take in for one movie and that can make things awkward. But perhaps not as awkward as one particular development that comes late in the film, is never really justified and never really convinces despite the talents of the people involved.
Ferrell and Witherspoon anchor the movie, but a talented ensemble help keep things light and funny.
Will Ferrell as Jim
Ferrell can do overly emotional weirdo with the best of them, and he’s fully committed here, whether he’s obsessing about his daughter’s big day or plotting revenge on the other wedding party.
Reese Witherspoon as Margot
Witherspoon is channeling a few characters she’s played before, partly Melanie from the aforementioned ‘Sweet Home Alabama.’
She’s typically great in the role, adept at both the humor and the heart portions, and has some excellent interactions with her family.
Playing Margot’s sister, Hagner is reliably entertaining, even if her role is by design less funny than Witherspoon’s.
Tatro, meanwhile, gets even less to do as her husband-to-be, but does pull off some memorable moments and, partly thanks to how he’s script, makes Dixon more than just the lunkheaded exotic dancer Neve’s family believes him to be.
Geraldine Viswanathan as Jenni and Stony Blyden as Oliver
Viswanathan, as she was in the likes of ‘Blockers‘, is a highlight and plays well against Ferrell’s particular energy. She’s also game for anything.
Blyden’s character, Jenni’s own future husband, is less fleshed out and he makes less of an impact.
Scovel is another reliable funny performer and playing Margot’s mildly misogynistic brother (who constantly refers to his wife as “the wife”), he nails the job.
Weston plays the matriarch of Margot’s family, who has a complicated relationship with her daughter. She’s excellent in the role, one of the few in the cast who truly finds both the funny and the heartfelt sides beyond the leads.
Mejia, who, while her role is still relatively small, continues to impress –– she was superb in ‘One of Them Days’ –– and plays Jenni’s best friend/bridesmaid who agrees to plan her wedding, and does a terrible job.
The actor commits completely, bringing a frantic, funny energy to her performance.
Somewhat unbalanced and sometimes a little too forced in its attempts to find humor in the situations, ‘You’re Cordially Invited’ seems unlikely to find its way down the altar to the favorites lists of this type of comedy.
Still, it has a few decent laughs and we’re sorry it’s another comedy with big names skipping theaters and heading straight to streaming.
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What’s the plot of ‘You’re Cordially Invited’?
A bride (Geraldine Viswanathan) and her father (Will Ferrell) discover their dream wedding venue has been double booked for another bride (Meredith Hagner) and her wedding-planner sister (Reese Witherspoon), with hilarious consequences.
(L to R) Will Ferrell and Harper Steele in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
In the new Netflix documentary ‘Will & Harper,’ which premieres September 27th, director Josh Greenbaum chronicles a cross-country road trip by actor/comedian Will Ferrell and writer Harper Steele, who embark on their journey after Harper comes out to Will as a trans woman.
Longtime friends and collaborators ever since meeting on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ Will and Harper address their own friendship, Will’s questions about Harper’s transition, and the chances of both acceptance and intolerance along the way, especially as they venture into areas of the country where Harper may be the target of hate and misunderstanding.
While some situations sadly meet those latter expectations, others show that people can find love and acceptance in surprising places and that Americans are much more complex than often portrayed. Deeply moving, warm, and of course hilarious (this is Will Ferrell, after all), ‘Will & Harper’ offers hope that we can all find common ground.
Moviefone was at a virtual press conference not long ago where Will, Harper, and Josh discussed the film, their experiences making it – and why Will threw a tantrum over Dunkin Donuts.
1) It’s All About Who You Know
(L to R) Harper Steele and Will Ferrell in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Before directing ‘Will & Harper,’ Josh Greenbaum directed documentaries like ‘Becoming Bond‘ and ‘The Short Game,’ as well as a number of TV projects and the narrative feature films ‘Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar‘ and ‘Strays,’ which is how he came into the orbit of Ferrell and Steele.
Josh Greenbaum: I actually knew them prior to making this doc, which is the first time I’ve ever made a documentary where I knew my subjects beforehand. I’ve known Will for about eight or so years. He produced my first movie, called ‘Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar.’ He starred in my next movie, called ‘Strays,’ and we’ve been friends for a while. I’ve known Harper for about three or four years. I was introduced to her through Kristen Wiig while I was making ‘Barb and Star.’ Then I was brought into the mix of this incredible story and this incredible film through our producers, Jessica Elbaum and Rafael Marmor.
2) You’ve Got Mail
(L to R) Will Ferrell and Harper Steele in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
As ‘Will & Harper’ begins, Will Ferrell gets an email from Harper — an email that Harper sent to all her friends — in which she reveals that she has transitioned.
Harper Steele: That’s a tough email to press ‘send’ on. You build up a lot of fear, unnecessarily in my case, which is a privilege that I had. I had friends that responded the right way. But I was very afraid to send that. I’m also a writer. I’m a comedy writer, and I’m arrogant enough to think that I’m always right. But that letter was a different kind of writing. I rewrote it probably a hundred times, you know, over a long period of time, 10 years. That was a very difficult letter to put out in the world.
3) Will Ferrell’s Big Idea
(L to R) Will Ferrell and Harper Steele in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Before her transition, Harper Steele loved taking road trips across the country, stopping in funky, out-of-the-way places and meeting new people, but she found herself wondering if she could safely do that again as a trans woman.
Will Ferrell: If you know Harper Steele, you know that one of her great loves is taking cross-country road trips. We started talking about that, and a thought just popped into my head. I made sure she knew I wasn’t trying to exploit our friendship in any way, even though I was trying to get into the lucrative documentary game, but I just said, “I have this crazy idea. Please say no. I expect you to say no. But what if we did a road trip and I was able to use it as a way to ask you all these questions I have, even though we’ve known each other for so long. I now have all these questions of what your transition is like and what it means to be trans, and I want to be able to educate myself in the right way. At the same time, we can go to these places and I’ll kind of be your buffer. We’ll go and talk to people, and we’ll film it, and maybe someone will pay for us to take a fun road trip.” And she eventually said yes.
4) The Key to Will and Harper’s Friendship
(L to R) Harper Steele and Will Ferrell in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Harper Steele says that there is one thing that has kept her and Will Ferrell’s friendship strong for years.
Harper Steele: Comedy, probably, is what we center our life around. We circulate and spin around each other with jokes all day long. I would say that’s sort of the basis of our friendship. It’s been that way since the day we met because we come from a humor background. I think we wanted to show that life and friendship are messy, but as long as you can keep it funny, you can basically encounter and talk about any subject. As long as you’re kind to each other and making each other laugh, that’s kind of our relationship and I think that is what we wanted to get across.
5) How To Support Trans Kids
Harper Steele in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Harper Steele was asked what advice she would give to parents about supporting their trans children.
Harper Steele: Well, personally, I would tell them to vote for the kinds of people that are going to support them. We’re not naming any names today, but I do think we need to keep in mind that politics does have a certain amount of control over the laws and the help that we get as trans people. I would say to any parent, you’re very lucky and you’re very fortunate to have trans children. So get out of their way. Let them be themselves, and they’ll be taking over the world soon enough. Let them be themselves.
Although they ask Kristen Wiig in the movie to compose a theme song for their trip, Will and Harper never actually heard the tune until Josh surprised them with it.
Will Ferrell: We thought it would be a funny running joke even if Kristen never got around to making the song. We were not even sure she was going to do it, and lo and behold, boy, did she ever. We had a final screening amongst ourselves where Josh said, “Can you guys come watch the movie again? I just made some small tweaks,” and he surprised us with her song at the end credits. It was another special moment of joy for us.
7) Will Ferrell’s Biggest Fear
(L to R) Harper Steele and Will Ferrell in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Although Will, Josh and Harper were all concerned about what kinds of reactions they’d encounter along the course of the trip, Will was also worried about what was going to happen in the car.
Will Ferrell: We were probably fearful about, could we fill the time every day? Could we talk to each other for six to eight hours a day in a car? And we passed with flying colors. We wouldn’t shut up. Also, I just thought, “Boy, this is going to get emotional at times. I don’t know where or when or how, but I just had this feeling that as I hear about what my friend went through and the struggles and the courage it took to get to this place, I just know this is going to get emotional.” I was kind of afraid of that. But then you go through it, and in the end, you’re so happy that you did.
8) A famous actor and a trans woman walk into a bar…
(L to R) Harper Steele and Will Ferrell in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
At one point Will and Harper stopped in a bar that on the surface seemed like it would be a dangerous place for Harper. But much to Josh Greenbaum’s surprise, they were welcomed and treated kindly.
Josh Greenbaum: Harper had picked out this bar in the middle of Oklahoma that was the kind of bar that she used to love to go to, and I had to go in beforehand just to sort of say to my camera team, like, “Why don’t you guys hide over here. Put your cameras here.” When I walked in there, I was taken aback. There were Confederate flags. There were political signs that just did not indicate this was going to be a positive experience for Harper, especially because she wanted to go in on her own. As you see in the film, I think those prejudices and biases that I had were sort of subverted and not met, in a good way. So a lot of times, we found that adage of “it’s hard to hate up close” to be true.
9) What Will Ferrell Learned On The Journey
‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Will Ferrell didn’t know what to expect from America when he and Harper embarked on their trip.
Will Ferrell: I think what we learned is it’s such a big country, and what I mean by that is that within this country, people want to engage. There’s a lot of stuff played up in the media in which we’re made to think we have all these differences when really, there’s a lot more we have in common with each other than we don’t. That having been said, it’s still not safe for trans people in certain areas and in certain situations. There still is a lot of hate out there that I was really educated on by going through this journey with Harper. So there’s definitely a lot to still push through. At the same time, we ran into some lovely people who were not threatened in any way by Harper, and if anything, were fantastic. They were just super happy that we actually went out of our way to visit their community, and I think overall, that’s our hope that that’s what America is.
10) Why did Will Ferrell throw a tantrum about Dunkin’ Donuts?
Will Ferrell in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
In one of the funniest scenes in the movie, Will and Harper drive past a Dunkin’ Donuts and Will throws a fit when Harper says they can’t stop there.
Will Ferrell: What’s so funny is that I’ve probably been in a Dunkin’ Donuts three times in my whole life. But we were just driving along and I spotted that sign from a distance, and something hit me where I was like, oh, I’m going to throw a tantrum right now. I’m just going to throw a tantrum and talk about how on this trip we haven’t done one fun thing and I just want to go to the Dunkin’ Donuts. I knew that would make her laugh. But that’s all we do. We are always thinking of the next thing that will make each other laugh.
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What is the story of ‘Will & Harper’?
When Will Ferrell finds out his close friend (Harper Steele) of 30 years is coming out as a trans woman, the two decide to embark on a cross-country road trip to process this new stage of their relationship in an intimate portrait of friendship, transition, and America.
Who is in ‘Will & Harper’?
Will Ferrell
Harper Steele
(L to R) Will Ferrell and Harper Steele in ‘Will & Harper’. Photo: Netflix.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Chris Renaud about his work on Despicable Me 4’, the success of the movie and the overall franchise, why we love the Minions, how Gru has changed since the first film, his rivalry with Maxime Le Mal, what Will Ferrell brought to the role, working with Steve Carell and what being part of this franchise has meant to Renaud personally.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Moviefone: To begin with, ‘Despicable Me 4’ is now available on digital but is still doing very well theatrically at the box office. Are you surprised by the success of the movie and the popularity of the franchise?
Chris Renaud: Yes and no. In that, I mean, look, as we’re making these films, we preview them. We test them with audiences, and I was at a premiere in New York and a premiere in Paris, and even though those are probably stacked in your favor, you can feel the energy. You can feel the response and the love that the audience really has for these characters. I think that obviously coming off ‘Minions: Rise of Gru’, the love of the audience is clear. I think the job for us as filmmakers is not to let them down. I think that after sitting with several audiences through the course of making the movie, and you can never predict what’s going to happen financially at the box office, but I felt that we were delivering on the promise and hopefully that that would translate to people going to the theater and seeing the movie.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: Can you explain the pop culture phenomenon that is the Minions? Why do we love them so much?
CR: It’s truly lightning in a bottle. I think it’s one of those things that all the elements came together to create this comedic personality with a universal quality. By that I mean from the design, which is super simple, a five-year-old could draw it, no problem. The simple color scheme, yellow and blue, besides the Ukrainian flag now means Minions. The language, which is every language and (no language at the same time), and very much influenced by things like R2-D2 and the Jawas where you kind of got what they were saying but you didn’t understand it literally. Their animated performance, their incompetence, their childlike quality which gives them this appeal that is hard to match. So, I really truly think it’s one of those things where every element of it came together in a way that is just special. That’s about all I can say. The things that I loved as a kid, Batman comics and ‘Star Wars’, the Minions are sort of maybe not quite at that level, but they’re in the culture in a way that is far and few between with other characters, and that’s amazing to have been a part of that.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: Can you talk about how Gru has changed since the first film?
CR: We think about that. We’re like, we need Gru to be Gru, which is maybe more villainous, but the truth is when we try it, what we end up finding is it feels false. The reason why, and I think one of the reasons that besides the Minions that people like this group of characters is that Gru has changed, and he’s changed the way probably most people change once they have kids and have a family. It does change you and change how you think. So, it’s very extreme for Gru, where he was a villain and then now, he’s essentially a good guy and a softy. He’s still, obviously in this movie, he enjoys seeing his snobby neighbor get bested by one of the Minions. So, he still Gru, but he’s a different guy. I think that the arc of his life is something that a lot of people, particularly the adults in the audience can relate to.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: Can you talk about Gru and Le Mal’s history together and their rivalry?
CR: Maxime Le Mal really starts with Will Ferrell’s performance, which is terrific. Seeing Maxime and Gru in the high school reunion, they went to a villain high school called Lycée Pas Bon. Seeing that rivalry at the beginning of the film I think is just so much fun, particularly with those comedic actors, but also giving us an opportunity to again, see a different aspect of Gru’s life. We haven’t really seen any clips from his high school. What I love too, without getting into the details is that the source of their rivalry is such a small detail and such a small transgression. I think that’s so true, and I think that’s one of the great things about these characters and what makes them so relatable is that little kind of, as I said, transgression from high school is the kind of thing that we carry with us the rest of our life. I love that, that it is not some big world-shattering stakes that they have against each other. It’s just a tiny insult that ends up creating this rivalry that runs through the film.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: What was it like working with Will Ferrell?
CR: So, the character in the script that we delivered to Will was Maxime Le Mal. So, he came in with a French accent, which was great. What we did do, as I sort of gave him the opportunity, I said, “Look, do you have any other ideas that we could try?” Because it was the first session. Will is like, “Listen, I got this great Swedish accent I’ve always wanted to try.” We would’ve changed the name no problem. It was early days. We did try a couple of things, but really the French accent that he came in with was what you hear and that is the character.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: Can you talk about Steve Carell’s impact on this franchise?
CR: I think it’s hard to understate how important Steve’s performance is to the character. Again, and we were just talking about accents. One of the things that when we started our first recording session for him way back in probably 2008, we were talking about Peter Sellers and ‘Inspector Clouseau‘ and this idea of an accent. We tried a couple of things like a Latin influence, a couple of different thoughts, a Spanish influence. But we quickly landed on what you hear, which is this kind of weird fusion of Eastern European. The scale to it that Steve was able to bring, and we obviously have the best comedic actor out there, but it all radiates out of what Steve has done with Gru. When he comes in and records, obviously at this point, we know what he is doing. It’s not like we’re figuring it out. We all have a good handle on Gru, but he’s very thoughtful in the process. He thinks about the lines. He is like, “Why would Gru say that?” He’s very considerate of the character and I’m sure he has a great affection for the character because he’s probably one of the most iconic, well-known animated characters of all time at this point. That’s no small credit to the performance that Steve has helped create. I say help because of the animators who do the visual and the character design, but Steve is really where it starts.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
MF: Finally, can you talk about what it has meant to you personally to be part of this beloved franchise?
CR: in a lot of ways that’s even hard to describe. It’s had such a huge impact on me, not just working with these characters and being a part of these successful films, but living in Paris, France where the film picture is produced. So as an American living abroad, I’ve spent essentially my adult life there. We moved back in 2008, it’s almost 16 years now I’ve lived in France. So, it’s every aspect of my life and our life as a family have been impacted by working on these films. I think that Illumination as a company stands where it stands because of the first ‘Despicable Me’, it was a rock-solid idea in the original pitch. Then the stuff that we were able to add to it, Pierre Coffin, myself, the writers, Chris Meledandri, and the team at Illumination. It really was one of these things that was built brick by brick in the first film. I think that first film is what carries the day and why we’re talking about a ‘Despicable Me 4’ now. It was something that from a design point of view and animation point of view, when it came out, everyone was like, “What is this?” I think that now it’s obviously become part of the culture, but I think that our ability to create something a bit different in the marketplace at the time still resonates. It’s why we’re still making these movies.
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What is the plot of ‘Despicable Me 4’?
Gru (Steve Carell) and Lucy (Kristen Wiig) and their girls—Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier) and Agnes (Madison Polan)—welcome a new member to the Gru family, Gru Jr. (Tara Strong), who is intent on tormenting his dad. Gru also faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) and his femme fatale girlfriend Valentina, (Sofia Vergara) forcing the family to go on the run.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Opening in theaters on July 3rd, ‘Despicable Me 4’s is Illumination Entertainment (and distributor Universal) unleashing the latest salvo of their behemoth franchise.
The success of ‘Despicable’ movies is almost comically predictable at this point, and while the latest offering does very little that’s really new, it seems certain to appeal to the family target audience.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Though it would be wrong to say that the franchise really matures, the new offering does at least represent the usual evolution of the story, as it finds Steve Carell’s Gru well and truly settled into family life. Yet his villainous past once more comes back to haunt him when a rival threatens his domestic bliss and the Gru clan is forced to retreat to a safe house.
Plus, any movie featuring Gru is contractually obliged to include the Minions, and here there is a new spin on that concept, albeit a slightly tired satire of a genre that has long since been spoofed beyond reason.
Script and Direction
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Written by ‘Despicable’ veteran Ken Daurio and in a slightly surprising turn, Mike White (though ‘The White Lotus’ boss is also credited with last year’s ‘Migration’, also from Illumination), so he’s clearly found a side gig groove with the animation company.
Don’t go expecting any ‘Lotus’-level depth here (not that you would from a knockabout cartoon effort), and the movie is refreshingly free of hackneyed attempts to teach family bonding lessons, mostly because they’ve all been covered before by the ‘Despicable’ movies. The gags come thick and fast, but the main issue with the screenplay and the movie on which they are based is that it all feels like separate elements that eventually try to gel for the big finish, but never feel like they’re all in the same plotline.
Gru, for example, not only has to deal with an old nemesis coming back, but a new potential threat, and the screenplay doesn’t really juggle them as effectively as they might, with several feeling underserved.
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Kudos, though, to the team for two referential jokes that feel like they were layered in specifically for the parents bringing their kids to this one –– particularly a ‘Terminator 2’ moment that really works.
Chris Renaud (another ‘Despicable’ veteran) and Patrick Delage (who has worked his way up from the animation department into more of an overall leadership role here) oversaw direction. And rather than trying to change what was working about the look and feel of the movies, they kept to the basic template –– lots of Minion moments (even if, like the split plotlines, they feel like separate skits that are crowbarred into the story until they serve a point at the end. And even then, they feel like a throwaway afterthought.
If you’re taking kids who are really only there for the squat, chattering, yellow pill-shaped nuisances, you might be better off just re-watching old shorts and moments online.
Performances
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
The voice cast is predictably entertaining –– many of them have been at this franchise long enough to bed into their roles. Where things fall down somewhat is a by-the-numbers script that doesn’t really give them much that’s fresh.
Steve Carell as Gru
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Carell knows how to knock out a Gru line in his sleep these days, but he throws himself into the role with typical relish. He’s a little isolated from the rest of the family for large stretches of the story, but he bounces well off of Joey King, who plays Poppy, a teenager with criminal aspirations of her own.
Will Ferrell as Maxime Le Mal
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Will Ferrell here plays Gru’s old schoolmate and nemesis, but though Ferrell tries out a cod-French accent to try and get something new, he’s rarely all that memorable. An obsession with cockroaches seemingly opens the door to Minion-style madness, but his insect army is established and then quickly forgotten. In the ranks of gadget-obsessed villainy that have cropped up in the movies, Le Mal doesn’t really pop.
And that goes double for his girlfriend, Valentina (Sofia Vergara). It seems clear that either there is more of her role on the cutting room floor, or Vergara spent roughly 10 minutes in the recording booth as Valentina is a largely pointless character.
Stephen Colbert, Kristen Wiig and More
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Stephen Colbert, Carell’s old ‘Daily Show’ colleague is always good value matched against him (here as snooty, preppy new neighbor Perry Prescott.
Kristen Wiig, meanwhile, gets some meatier material as Lucy Wilde, Gru’s wife, including her attempts to become part of the new community where they’re forced to move.
And finally, there’s Gru Jr. the family’s new addition (who mostly just makes gurgling and other infant sounds). He’s a fun diversion, a child who simply doesn’t like his father (until…. Well, that would be spoiling things, but you can guess).
The Minions do their thing as usual, and their superhero spoof is diverting if not really effective at this point when we don’t really need another example of poking fun at the genre.
Final Thoughts
‘Despicable Me 4’ opens in theaters on July 3, 2024. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Gru and co. are such reliable money spinners for Illumination at this point that they could probably just put out 90 minutes of Minions babbling and slapping each other, and family audiences would crack open their wallets to see it.
You might find yourself wishing for something truly revolutionary, but it’s unlikely to disappoint the diehard kiddie fans.
‘Despicable Me 4’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.
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What’s the story of ‘Despicable Me 4’?
Gru (Steve Carrell) and Lucy (Kristen Wiig) and their girls —Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier) and Agnes (Madison Polan) — welcome a new member to the Gru family, Gru Jr., who is intent on tormenting his dad.
At the same time, Gru faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) and his femme fatale girlfriend Valentina (Sofia Vergara), and the family is forced to go on the run.
2024 was supposed to be the year that the Golden Globes moved on. Detached from the old Hollywood Foreign Press Association (yet now run by possibly an even shadier for-profit corporation), it was designed to make up for a tarnished history that saw the awards get dumped by previous network NBC and chart a bright new future.
Yet on the evidence of the ceremony itself, it couldn’t recover past glories (even if those were mostly the results of the previous organization’s star-happy focus). There was the requisite assortment of big names (your Leonardo DiCaprio, your Martin Scorsese, your Christopher Nolan) but the whole thing came across as less Golden than bronze.
Comedian Jo Koy (who film fans might know outside of his stand-up career for last year’s ‘Easter Sunday’) stumbled out of the gate by quipping that he only got the gig a few days ago (it’s true that a number of more recognizable names passed) and blaming his writers for any unfunny jokes. Not a good look.
A dig at Taylor Swift’s new NFL relationship didn’t go over well either –– with the singing superstar visibly unimpressed when the camera cut to her.
He went on to offer some more visibly uninspired cracks at Barry Keoghan’s genitals in ‘Saltburn’ and Barbie’s breasts, which mostly had the audience cringing. We don’t expect him to be invited back.
“I had fun. It was a moment that I’ll always remember. It’s a tough room. It was a hard job, I’m not going to lie…I’d be lying if [I said] it doesn’t hurt. I hit a moment there where I was like, ‘Ah.’ Hosting is just a tough gig. Yes, I’m a stand-up comic but that hosting position it’s a different style. I kind of went in and did the writer’s thing. We had 10 days to write this monologue. It was a crash course. I feel bad, but I got to still say I loved what I did. The Taylor [Swift] one was just a little flat…It was a weird joke, I guess. But it was more on the NFL, I was trying to make fun of the NFL using cutaways and how the Globes didn’t have to do that. So it was more of a jab toward the NFL. But it just didn’t come out that way.”
One of the more viral –– and genuinely funny –– moments came as ‘Succession’ began to win the majority of the TV awards (that series and ‘The Bear’s near-dominance one of the entirely un-shocking elements of the ceremony). Kieran Culkin, who took the stage after winning Male Actor in a Drama Series, also took the occasion to throw a good-hearted jab the way of Pedro Pascal, who was nominated in the same category.
After a heartfelt celebration of finally nabbing the award, Culkin went full Roman Roy for a moment: “Suck it, Pedro…”
Pascal’s reaction –– a comedic combo that went from laughing to fake tears, is already a meme.
Pedro Pascal reacts perfectly to Kieran Culkin's Golden Globes speech burn https://t.co/DFP2zIXm1g
Award shows are rarely known for sparkling words when it comes to presenters. Celebrities show up on the stage, read some boring copy celebrating the creativity of whoever and then throw it to a clip package of nominees.
This year’s Globes were no exception, with largely perfunctory pre-announcement banter that barely rose to the level of competence.
Jennifer Lawrence, who has been a reliably funny awards presence in the past, offered another this time. When she was shown during the nominees section for Best Actress, Motion Picture Comedy or Musical, she mouthed, “if I don’t win, I’m leaving!”
Possibly the biggest mistake even before the show was the blatant attempt to have Taylor Swift attend by nominating her ‘Eras Tour’ concert film in the new Cinematic and Box Office Achievement category.
It worked in that she showed (only to seem insulted, see above) and then box office behemoth ‘Barbie’ scored the award anyway, one of only a couple it took home on the night.
If there were true highlights, it was in terms of representation –– Lily Gladstone won for her role in ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ and celebrated the victory for Native Americans while also offering a sweet shout-out to her mother, who had accompanied her to the event.
Likewise, Ali Wong became the first Asian woman to win Best Actress In A Limited Series or TV Movie (which feels a little bit forced, but is progress nonetheless) for ‘Beef’, which also saw her co-star Steven Yeun win alongside the show.
And Christopher Nolan appeared genuinely touched to have won his first directing Globe for ‘Oppenheimer’ (one of a parade the movie scored in an unsurprising run).
The ceremony itself at least scored on the ratings front –– its airing on CBS and Paramount+ saw the numbers jump from last year’s NBC/Peacock appearance –– and it counts as the most-watched Globes since 2020. But even that seems a useless metric, since the 2021 event was banished to YouTube and doesn’t even really count for ratings.
Can the Globes become relevant again? That’s the big question for now. On the evidence of last night, the answer is a big old “maybe”.
Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’ took the box office by storm, and as the audience showed up at the movie theaters all dolled up in pink, ‘Barbie’ quickly became this summer’s movie phenomenon.
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Based on the iconic doll, ‘Barbie’ takes us into Barbie Land, where we meet Margot Robbie’s Sterotypical Barbie as she begins to experience things out of her normal routine – cold showers, sour milk, thoughts of mortality, and the worst of all, flat feet. With Ken (Ryan Gosling) tagging along, Barbie sets off to seek out the answers by traveling to the real world. She soon realizes things in the real world are quite the opposite of everything she knows.
Directed by Greta Gerwig and co-written by Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, the clever story and incredible visuals made ‘Barbie’ the talk of the town. The movie is certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with an 88% critics score and 83% audience score. Due to it sharing an opening date with Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’, movie fans took the opportunity and turned the dual release into a double-feature event, therefore kicking off the endless waves of “Barbenheimer” memes.
The official synopsis for ‘’Barbie” is below:
“To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Or you have a full-on existential crisis. Unless you’re a Ken.”
(L to R) Kinsley Ben-Adir, Ryan Gosling as Ken, and Ncuti Gatwa in Warner Bros. Pictures’ ‘Barbie,’ a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures.
‘Barbie’ is officially the highest grossing film of 2023, having just crossed $1.3 billion globally. Opening to $162 million, the Margot Robbie-led film has earned $612 million domestically. Already an icon for many, ‘Barbie’ quickly became a social media sensation, with fans posting everything from their movie-going outfits to their Barbie collections. The film is filled with references to many Barbies and Ken dolls from various decades, sending audiences down nostalgia lane.
On the surface, ‘Barbie’ may seem like a fun adventure, much like ‘The Lego Movie’. However, the film has a deeper message and touches on the pressure of expectations, insecurities, and most importantly, what it means to be human.
‘Barbie’ premiere on July 9, 2023 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. It was released domestically on July 21, 2023. Currently, it is still playing in some theaters, but as the movie has been in theaters for around 45 days, its theatrical window will soon come to an end. If you want to experience ‘Barbie’ on the big screen, be sure to do it soon.
The movie arrived on digital September 5 for purchase on platforms such as Prime Video, Google Play, Apple TV, Vudu, YouTube, and more for $29.99.
‘Barbie’ has a total runtime of 1 hour and 56 minutes.
Although ‘Barbie’ is leaving the theaters, Warner Bros Pictures has teamed up with IMAX to give fans a limited one-week run of ‘Barbie’ starting September 22nd. As a special treat for the IMAX audience, a special greeting from director Greta Gerwig will play ahead of the film. There will also be exclusive post-credit footage playing after the film, specially selected by Gerwig herself.
Greta Gerwig attends the ‘Barbie’ Press Tour, Sydney Australia 2023. Photography by Caroline McCredie for Warner Bros/NBC Universal. Contact: jade.perry@nbcuni.com.
In regards to the special IMAX release, Jeff Goldstein, President of Domestic Distribution, and Andrew Cripps, President of International Distribution, said:
“We really wanted to super-serve all the fans out there who made this the Summer of ‘Barbie’ in every way imaginable, and we couldn’t think of a better way than to serve up the biggest film of 2023 and the biggest Warner Bros. film of all time on the biggest, most experiential screens around. Thanks to our terrific partners at IMAX and our incredible director, Greta Gerwig, we went a step further and are offering audiences an added incentive with this special post-credits footage. We encourage moviegoers everywhere, whether they’ve seen ‘Barbie’ or not, to see it in IMAX for a can’t-miss moment in film history.”
No word yet when ‘Barbie’ will make its way to streaming, but when it does, it is likely to end up on Max as the film is distributed by Warner Bros/Discovery.
(L to R) Reggie (Will Ferrell), Maggie (Isla Fisher), Hunter (Randall Park) and Bug (Jamie Foxx) in ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
In theaters now, ‘Strays’ represents an attempt to bring the sort of bawdy comedy found in the likes of ‘The Hangover’ to an animal quest film more along the lines of family classics such as ‘The Incredible Journey’ and ‘Homeward Bound’. The result is hit-and-miss, but when it works, it’s bark-out-loud funny.
(L to R) Bug (Jamie Foxx) and Reggie (Will Ferrell) in ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
When Reggie (Will Ferrell), a naïve, relentlessly optimistic Border Terrier, is abandoned on the mean city streets by his lowlife owner, Doug (Will Forte), Reggie is certain that his beloved owner would never leave him on purpose.
But once Reggie falls in with a fast-talking, foul-mouthed Boston Terrier named Bug (Jamie Foxx), a stray who loves his freedom and believes that owners are for suckers, Reggie finally realizes he was in a toxic relationship and begins to see Doug for the heartless sleazeball that he is.
Determined to seek revenge, Reggie, Bug and Bug’s pals — Maggie (Isla Fisher), a smart Australian Shepherd who has been sidelined by her owner’s new puppy, and Hunter (Randall Park), an anxious Great Dane who’s stressed out by his work as an emotional support animal — together hatch a plan and embark on an epic adventure to help Reggie find his way home… And make Doug pay by biting off the appendage he loves the most (it’s not his foot).
Directed by Josh Greenbaum, who brought us 2021’s sublimely silly ‘Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar’, ‘Strays’ is written by Dan Perrault, best known for ‘American Vandal’ and ‘Players’ on TV.
If you ever wanted to see ‘Saturday Night Live’ veteran Will Forte –– more normally associated with amiable weirdoes –– playing one of the worst dog owners to appear on screens, then this is the movie you’ve been waiting for. Yet Forte’s Doug, a weed-smoking, porn-obsessed loser who begrudgingly goes along with the idea when his girlfriend adopts adorable terrier Reggie (voiced by Will Ferrell), is not the star of this movie, Reggie is.
Along, that is, with the new friends he makes when Doug abandons him. Foxx’s Bug is a streetwise pup with an ego bigger than his frame, but who makes for a good mentor to Reggie, who has only ever known life with humans.
(L to R) Bug (Jamie Foxx) and Reggie (Will Ferrell) in ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
The pooch pals –– also including Randall Park’s Hunter, a former police dog trainee who now works as a therapy dog at a hospice (and keeps a cone of shame on permanently for his own insecurity issues) and Isla Fisher’s Maggie, blessed with an amazing nose and a crush on Hunter –– are the highlight of the movie, a compelling blend of well-trained real animals with CG mouth manipulation.
While they don’t all enjoy the same character development as Reggie or Bug, they’re an appealing, funny foursome and their adventures offer a lot of entertainment. With experienced performers bringing character as well as laughs to the roles, this features such memorable moments as the leads encountering Labrador Gus (voiced by Josh Gad), a hilarious take on the noble narrator dog we’ve met in movies including ‘A Dog’s Purpose’ and ‘Racing in the Rain’, and who is harboring a very dark secret.
Plus, all of Reggie’s interactions with Doug are good for a laugh, even as dog owners (and anyone who just loves animals in general) will loathe his living guts.
It moves along at a swift pace, never outstays its welcome and makes you care about our furry foursome in ways you don’t expect at the start. Oh, and we’re fairly certain that this is the only movie you’ll see this year that features Sofia Vergara as the voice of Delilah, a couch that Bug enjoys having sex with.
(L to R) Bug (Jamie Foxx) and Reggie (Will Ferrell) in ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
Not everything about the movie works; it does indulge in some first-base dog and other humor. We’ve seen a hundred variations on the age-old dog vs. mailman scenario and one small tweak aside (one plays into how Reggie makes it home), the movie doesn’t really find a fresh take.
There are also scenes such as the canines discovering a patch of mushrooms in a forest and gobbling them down, only to go on a wild drug trip. A few moments work well (reality shifting to show Hunter as a sock puppet with human hands), but otherwise it’s the sort of gag that has been done many, many times. Ditto overly macho police dog Rolf (Rob Riggle), whose best use is Maggie calling him “Adolf” to his bemused reaction.
And there are times when the reveling in poop, pee and eating disgusting things jokes stretches a little too thin, but if you were already on board with the movie, you know what you’re in for.
Yet there are so many inventive uses of the dogs’ worldview (fireworks at a county fair serve as the setting for a war movie spoof for our spooked hounds who look to escape) that the balance of great jokes to clunkers is heavily on the positive side.
It was about time that the dog movie got the full-on spoof comedy treatment, and ‘Strays’ works to bring the heart and well as the gross-out gags.
‘Strays’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.
A scene from ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
When a gullible Border Terrier named Reggie (Will Ferrell) is abandoned on the streets by his selfish and ruthless owner Doug (Will Forte), an animal-hating drug addict who never wanted him, he teams up with other strays including a street-wise Boston Terrier named Bug (Jamie Foxx), an Australian Shepherd named Maggie (Isla Fisher), and a therapy Great Dane named Hunter (Randall Park) to get revenge on Doug.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Josh Greenbaum about his work on ‘Strays,’ making a hard R-rated version of ‘Homeward Bound,’ his first reaction to the screenplay, the challenges of directing an all dog cast, working with Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx, and their characters onscreen chemistry.
‘Strays’ director Josh Greenbaum.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch the interview.
Moviefone: To begin with, is it fair to say that this movie is a comedic hard R-rated version of ‘Homeward Bound,’ and what was your first reaction to Dan Perrault’s screenplay?
Josh Greenbaum: I think so. I think that’s totally fair. Well, when I first saw the log line, which was, as you can imagine, absurd. It was a little dog, Reggie, who gets abandoned by his mean owner Doug, meets some strays, and then wants to get revenge by biting Doug’s most beloved body part off. I thought, “This sounds amazing. But it sounds a little insane, which I love.” But to be honest, I wondered, “Oh, is it just going to be a dog spoof movie,” to your question of is it just an R-rated ‘Homeward Bound.’ I think it delivered on what I needed and wanted from that of, “Okay, we do subvert the genre and have our fun in moments.” But what really jumped out at me was, “This actually is a fully formed script on its own,” and in a way, made me think of, certainly, wonderful movies like ‘40 Year Old Virgin,’ ‘Bridesmaids’ and ‘Superbad,’ but also ‘Stand By Me,’ and I thought about ‘Breaking Away,’ these films about four friends who go on a journey, and grow, and are underdogs. So, in a way, I think I was always searching for that film, and weirdly it came across my desk in the form of an R-rated dog movie. So, that I think is when I finally hooked in and said, “Oh, this movie’s funny, outrageous and does subvert the dog genre and brings it into the adult world.” But I just love that it actually had heart and functioned on its own as its own story.
MF: Can you talk about the challenges of directing an all dog cast and the VFX you had to utilize to ensure their safety?
JG: First of all, one of the things I stated when I came on board to direct was I would really like to utilize real dogs as much as possible, mostly because I wanted it to feel really real, I think, for adult audiences to enjoy this. I’ve had dogs my whole life. I live with dogs. I own two dogs now, one of whom I adopted from the movie, who was little puppy Reggie, now lives with us, and I have “Will Ferrell” running around my house. So, I wanted it to feel really grounded and the more it was the more it felt like it was right for adult audiences. I think if it was overly anthropomorphized or overly CG with big expressions, it works with children, but not for adults. I think that I pull out and pull back when I see that kind of work done. So, we only really leaned on the incredible CG and visual effects, obviously, to have them talk. We were unsuccessful training the dogs to talk. But to get them talking, occasionally we would add a little extra emotion here and there. But again, I tried to get the emotion out of the performance of the dog on set. If I needed a dog confused, I wouldn’t have it furrow its brow. I’d have it cock its head sideways the way dogs do. Then, of course, anytime it was anything remotely unsafe for a dog to do, we would go to a full CG dog. So, we have, as an example, a sequence, not giving too much away, but it’s in our trailers, where an eagle comes into the story and you don’t obviously want to mix small dogs with birds of prey. So, that becomes an obvious choice to go to a full CG dog.
(L to R) Bug (Jamie Foxx) and Reggie (Will Ferrell) in ‘Strays,’ directed by Josh Greenbaum.
MF: Finally, can you talk about Bug and Reggie’s friendship and creating that relationship in the recording studio with Jamie Foxx and Will Ferrell?
JG: I mean, at its core, I think this film, it’s about a few things. It’s certainly about being in a toxic, unhealthy relationship with someone and getting out of it, and how your friends help you through that and find your own sense of self-worth again. I think at the center of that is this relationship between Bug and Reggie. So, casting Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx, and having them in the voiceover booth working together was just, for me, just magic to watch. They played off of each other so well. They’ve never been in a film together! This is really their first time, and you can feel their chemistry instantly. I mean, both in the film, but I remember being in that voiceover booth and watching these two guys hit the ball back and forth, and it was just a joy to watch. But, yeah, it’s a very sweet relationship. They have differing life philosophies. One is overly optimistic and believes you can trust everyone and put your love in everything, which there’s some validity to that. The other one, I think, has been burned and says, “No, don’t do that. You should protect yourself, close down, don’t trust anyone. Just look after yourself.” For me, that richness, of a thematic conversation to anchor a film on is great. Even though it’s an outrageous, really funny, really fun time of a movie, there’s something really palpable, emotional, and sweet at the center with these two characters. Of course, there’s no one better than Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx to bring that to life. So, I felt very lucky to have them as my two leads of this movie.
Director Josh Greenbaum with Reggie on the set of ‘Strays.’
