Will Ferrell reflects on his holiday classic ‘Elf’: “I’m so lucky to have a movie like that in my catalog”

In the years since its 2003 release, “Elf” has become America’s favorite holiday movie. Every year, families watch director Jon Favreau’s comedy about a human named Buddy (Will Ferrell) who was raised by Santa’s elves at the North Pole and goes to New York City to reunite with his birth father, cranky book publisher Walter (James Caan) and remind him of the spirit of Christmas. As of this writing, it’s the #1 movie on Max and the #2 movie on Hulu. 

The main reason why the movie has endured is Ferrell’s incredibly committed performance as Buddy, who sees the world with a sense of childlike wonder and enthusiasm. In an interview with People, Ferrell reflected on what the film means to him. “It’s really quite special,” Ferrell said. “I mean, it continues to grow by leaps and bounds, and it continues to kind of entrench itself as kind of a holiday classic for people. I’m so lucky to have a movie like that in my catalog.”

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He noted that “Elf” is not just a holiday classic, either — “I have people come to me saying, ‘We watch ‘Elf’ on July 4th. We just love it.’ “

“So that’s what’s so great about what I get to do,” adds Ferrell. “You never really have an idea of what’s going to land with people, and I love the fact that this movie continues to resonate in a way that’s pretty incredible.”

In 2021, Ferrell told The Hollywood Reporter that he turned down $29 million to return for an “Elf” sequel because he didn’t believe in the idea. “I would have had to promote the movie from an honest place, which would’ve been, like, ‘Oh no, it’s not good. I just couldn’t turn down that much money.’ And I thought, ‘Can I actually say those words? I don’t think I can, so I guess I can’t do the movie.’”

Ferrell is currently getting Oscar buzz for his documentary “Will & Harper,” which chronicles a road trip he takes with his friend Harper Steele after Steele comes out as trans. 

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