Following a publicity blitz as massive as Ron Burgundy’s ego, “Anchorman 2” finally hits screens Wednesday.
The star-studded movie lured half of Hollywood to Atlanta, and although it’s set in New York City and San Diego, local viewers likely will be able to spot area locations including Woodruff Park and Peachtree Center.
The movie’s debut date was bumped up a couple of days from an originally planned Friday launch, but fans have gotten to see plenty of the legendary anchorman in the months running up to the opening. Will Ferrell, appearing in character, has been everywhere — hawking Dodge Durangos and Jockey underwear, co-hosting the evening news in Bismarck, N.D., and stumbling into DirecTV’s “The Dan Patrick Show,” to name just a few of the movie’s clever marketing arrangements.
Ferrell’s famous character is part of a new exhibit at the Newseum in Washington, and the actor/anchor addressed students at Boston’s Emerson College, where the communication school was rechristened for a day as the Ron Burgundy School of Communication.
“You have to report the facts, unless it’s too hard to find the facts, then you just make something up,” Ferrell/Burgundy advised the aspiring journalists who enjoyed an advanced screening and cups of Ben & Jerry’s Ron Burgundy’s Scotchy Scotch Scotch ice cream, reported USA Today and other real media outlets that covered the pretend media event.
Despite his promotional ubiquity, Ferrell was not available for an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. We were able to nab a few minutes with Paul Rudd, who plays reporter and ladies' man Brian Fantana, and David Koechner, who plays sportscaster Champ Kind.
“I loved the whole ‘getting the band back together,’” Rudd said of reprising his role for the sequel that also stars Christina Applegate, Harrison Ford, James Marsden, Steve Carell, Meagan Good, Kristen Wiig, Greg Kinnear and Fred Willard. “I like watching complete morons who don’t seem to change and yet care about each other and weirdly don’t judge each other for all the horrible stuff they do.”
The movie was filmed almost entirely in Atlanta, with some key moments filmed on St. Simons Island. Look for the Silver Skillet and Olympic Flame restaurants, where dining scenes were shot; the Marietta Middle School gym, site of a science fair scene; Woodruff Arts Center, where a performance was filmed; and Peachtree Center, where a hilarious ice skating scene happened. Much of the interior work took place at the state archives building, and the movie’s largest scene was shot right in the middle of downtown, in and around Woodruff Park.
“It was pretty crazy shooting in that park,” Rudd said. “It was so central, which was surprising. I kind of assumed it was going to be outside the city in some remote location. I felt bad for the people who lived there. I know it’s a busy area. I imagine the novelty wears off pretty quickly when you’re stuck in traffic.”
Actually, the novelty never wears off in the massive scene filmed there. We won’t give away the plot twists, but can tell you that Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Liam Neeson, Will Smith, Kanye West, John C. Reilly, Jim Carrey, Sacha Baron Cohen, Vince Vaughn and Kirsten Dunst all got in on the action.
“We had a lot of cameos. I was amazed,” Rudd said. “It was so fun. Every day somebody else would show up.”
In an interview with the AJC just as the movie wrapped this spring, director Adam McKay said Georgia’s film-friendly tax policies helped him stuff “Anchorman 2” with talent.
“The tax credit’s huge,” McKay said at the time. “We really had to maximize our spend. We basically shot a $100 million movie for half the price.”
Toward the end of filming, you had to wonder who was left in Hollywood.
“Our goal was to fill it with all the people we love,” McKay said. “We just got so many good actors, from big-name people to character actors. We knew it was going to be hard work. We knew it was going to be a strain. We were able to pull it off. This is the trickiest movie we’ve ever done.”
Koechner said the cast members’ personal friendships are reflected in their performances.
“We’ve all stayed friends through the years,” he said. “There’s a unique chemistry we share that perhaps informs the movie in a particular way.”
So just what is it that makes the outrageous Ron Burgundy and his oddball news colleagues so endearing?
“There’s something in all of them that people see in someone else,” Koechner said. “They’re all human flaws and human frailties. We’re ultimately all drawn together by the weakest parts of us.”
He paused for a heartbeat before adding, “How’s that for pathos?”
Given the long promotional run-up to “Anchorman 2,” could a threequel be in the works? Koechner said he gets that question a lot.
“People have got to stop it,” he protested. “This one’s not even open yet! You’ve got to enjoy the moment. Come on, let’s enjoy this one for a minute.”
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