Page 78 - Sharp Winter 2023

BAH HUMBUG
RYAN REYNOLDS AND WILL FERRELL ON THEIR CHRISTMAS CAROL–INSPIRED MUSICAL, SPIRITED
By Justine Smith
SPIRITED BEGINS WITH A (LITERAL) COLD OPEN SET IN A WINTRY suburb, as Karen (Rose Byrne) faces off against her fearful neighbours. She’s built a reputation as a bit of a humbug, as if the name didn’t give it away, but things have changed this morning: she’s kinder and her heart has grown
three sizes.
As if pulling the curtain back on The Wizard of Oz, we’re thrust into the magical inner workings of the bureaucratic spirits responsible for an annual Christmas haunting aimed at turning a Scrooge into a Bob Cratchit. Will Ferrell, playing the Ghost of Christmas Present, sums it up nicely: “We haunt someone, change them into a better person, then sing about it.”
For over a century, things have gone off without a hitch behind the scenes. But Ferrell has have never come up against such a cynical target: a high-powered PR flack, played by Ryan Reynolds, who is willing to do anything to win, even destroy a grade-school student’s reputation.
Matching the power of classic Hollywood miracle-making with the sarcastic,
irony-poisoned tone of modern life, Spirited captures the reason for the season in a battle for one man’s seemingly irredeemable soul.
Via Zoom, Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds spoke about working together, tap dancing, and A Christmas Carol’s enduring appeal.
While you both have brief scenes in Dick, Spirited is your first time working together. What was that experience like?
Ryan Reynolds: It’s been a huge dream and certainly a privilege to work with Will. That’s the pri- mary driving force behind my wanting to do Spirited. He’s somebody I’ve admired, and you’d struggle to find a person in the entertainment industry who has contributed as much to the modern comedic lexicon as Mr. Will Ferrell. It was a pretty awesome way to spend time.
Sorry, Will, I know you were listening to that. He wrote that speech.
Will Ferrell: And you delivered it perfectly.
RR: Thank you very much.
WF: The same goes for me. I was attached to the film initially, and when Ryan’s name came up, we immediately thought, “Oh my gosh, he’d be the perfect person for the role.” He can sing: you’ve heard “Careless Whisper” at the end of Deadpool. I was so excited to work with Ryan and equally thrilled to find out up close just how talented he is and what a great guy he is.
RR: We were really thrown into the trenches together with all this new territory for both of us. It
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FEATURE
78 WINTER 2023
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