Will Ferrell has upset fans with his surprise appearance as Buddy the Elf at a recent NHL game.
In a viral moment from December, the actor dressed up as his loveable character from the 2003 Christmas classic Elf and watched the Los Angeles Kings play the Philadelphia Flyers. However, instead of portraying the familiar cheerful version of Buddy, he sported an unshaved beard and looked miserable while drinking beer and smoking a cigarette.
“Some people were not too happy, though,” Ferrell told PEOPLE in a recent interview. “They thought, ‘Please be true to the character. That was not cool.’”
Joking about Buddy’s mindset, the actor added: “Buddy was having a bad day. Yeah. He just went to a hockey game, smoked cigarettes and drank beer.”
Buddy the Elf isn't looking too good these days… 😭🤣 pic.twitter.com/tGgo6KGFSf
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) December 30, 2024
During a recent appearance on Travis Kielce and Jason Kelce’s podcast New Heights, Ferrell explained what motivated him to attend the game as a dishevelled Buddy.
“That was just — I get these weird ideas every now and then. We’re season ticket holders for the L.A. Kings. We have seats right on the glass, which are amazing,” he said.
“I told my wife, ‘Over the break, it would be funny if I just got a Buddy the Elf costume and didn’t shave for like a week, and I’m just sitting there with a candy cigarette and I’m just gonna sit there for a period and see how people react.’ And that was it.”
During Ferrell’s PEOPLE interview, Reese Witherspoon – his co-star in the new comedy You’re Cordially Invited – asked him if he still has the costume from the movie. After confirming that he didn’t Ferrell revealed that the outfit was just a cheap knock off from Amazon.
“People were commenting like, ‘I love that he’s just in a cheap Buddy costume from Amazon,’ which is true,” he said.
Last year, Ferrell revealed that he drove James Caan “crazy” on the set of Elf and that he was genuinely annoyed with him during filming.