Adam McKay

A Modern Auteur

Comedy's Dynamic Duo

Will Ferrell

Director, writer, actor, producer; there is nothing Adam McKay doesn't do. Adam McKay and Will Ferrell are actually writing partners and McKay is often found behind the lens of Ferrell's greatest hits, modern satires such as both "Anchorman" films, "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Rick Bobby," "Step Brothers," and "The Other Guys." In each film we see Ferrell portraying different stereotypes. In previous years, the satire has been subtle ("Step Brothers" & "The Other Guys"), but more recently his satire has been more pronounced ("Anchorman 2"). Another identification of a McKay production would be his use of montage. For example, when Dale and Brennan first begin bonding in "Step Brothers" or the commercial sequence in "Talladega Nights." Finally, another common thread in all these films would be done in the production phase, improvisation. In many of their films McKay and Ferrell like to allow room for artistic license, which actually makes for some fan favorite scenes. For example, much of the first family dinner scene was improvised by the cast during filming.