Cannes Film Festival 2013

Harrison Ford joins the cast of 'Anchorman 2' as a veteran news anchor

Adam McKay's comedy sequel keeps getting more and more promising

<p>Yep. This is going to be awesome.</p>

Yep. This is going to be awesome.

Credit: Paramount Pictures

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Adam McKay has made many funny films, but I think he'd be the first to admit that there is something special about "Anchorman."

Part of that is the script, which might be the most unfettered bit of madness that McKay and Will Ferrell have put together so far, a celebration of a breed of glorious idiot that is far too rare today.  Part of that is the ensemble, packed with actors who were all completely in tune with the weird reality of the film, all of them free to try almost anything in front of the camera.  And part of it is because broadcast news is so preposterously silly, especially on the local level, that you barely have to exaggerate to make it work.

I thought one of the best things about the film was the way they suggested the '70s in little details like the non-stop littering or the smoking in public, accentuating some of the worst of the decade with glee.  When the sequel arrives in theaters in December, I'm excited to see how they have moved the cast up to the '80s, and it sounds like they are indeed dealing with the rise of the 24-hour-a-day news cycle thanks to the advent of the cable news networks.

There's a Ted Turner-esque character in the film who they're trying to get Jeff Bridges onboard to play, and today, it appears they've landed Harrison Ford to play the veteran anchor who Ron Burgundy finds himself at odds with in the film.  That's in addition to the hot new anchor who will most likely be played by James Marsden and Kristen Wiig's character, rumored to be Brick's wife, who Adam McKay described as "dangerous" in a recent Tweet.

Obviously Ford played a news anchor a few years ago in "Morning Glory," but what I love about this casting for this film is that he's a perfect foil for the sort of insane energy of the rest of the cast, and I can't wait to see how Ford deals with Brick Tamland or Champ Kind or Ron Burgundy himself.

It seems wildly appropriate that they're going to be shooting in Atlanta for this one.  And if you'd like to hear what Steve Carrell had to say about the table read they did last week, I'll have that video for you in just a few.

"Anchorman 2" is set for release on December 20, 2013.

Drew-mcweeny-sm
Drew McWeeny
Film Editor
A respected critic and commentator for fifteen years, Drew McWeeny helped create the online film community as "Moriarty" at Ain't It Cool News, and now proudly leads two budding Film Nerds in their ongoing movie education.

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  • Default-avatar

    Gregory

    I was excited for Anchorman 2 well before this news broke! Now? I'm so excited for it, I can barely contain myself! December can't come soon enough!

    March 4, 2013 at 7:00PM EST Reply to Comment
  • Default-avatar

    Roy Munson

    Big fan of HF and an even bigger fan of Ron Burgundy.

    But ...can Ford be funny? I'm not so cure

    March 4, 2013 at 9:39PM EST Reply to Comment
    • Default-avatar

      Roy Munson *sure

      March 4, 2013 at 9:40PM EST
  • Default-avatar

    mgrabois

    Why is it wildly appropriate that they're filming in Atlanta? Shouldn't they be shooting in the always-classy San Diego area?

    March 5, 2013 at 4:38AM EST Reply to Comment
    • Default-avatar

      Paul S Reply to comment...

      March 5, 2013 at 8:09AM EST
    • Default-avatar

      Paul S Whilst I will miss classy San Diego, Atlanta is the home of CNN and I also hope they might tip their hat to the 1988 film Broadcast News....in their own crazy way, of course!

      March 5, 2013 at 8:11AM EST
    • Default-avatar

      Paul S Sorry...just read in this month's Empire that Atlanta will serve for New York...not sure why they couldn't shoot in the Big Apple in the first place.

      March 5, 2013 at 1:17PM EST

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