Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImageAdam McKayis opening about a scary incident that happened on the set ofAnchorman 2nearly eight years after the film premiered.In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterthat was published on Wednesday, McKay, 53, was asked what he thought of the fatalRustshooting that took the life of cinematographerHalyna Hutchins. After describing the on-set tragedy as his “greatest single fear as a producer and a director,” he told the story of a “really scary” “near accident” on set ofAnchorman 2involvingWill Ferrell.“It was a scene where Ron Burgundy was going to hang himself. It was a silly joke,” theDon’t Look Updirector started. “For a half a second, the rig didn’t operate properly and there was actual tension on the rope, but then it gave way and Will was OK. Thank God no one was hurt. We were sick about it for two days. We said, ‘All right, let’s stop. Let’s have a meeting.’ “Craig Barritt/GettyNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.TheBig Shortdirector went on to describe another incident on the set of the firstAnchormanmovie involving one of the scenes with a live bear. “The bear did a hint of a bluff charge for a second,” McKay recalled. “From that moment on, I said, ‘I will never put a live animal in a shot with an actor ever again.’ So every time I do it, it’s a composite shot because it’s not worth it.“According to the U.S.National Park Service, a bluff charge is “meant to scare or intimidate,” and a bear will “pull itself up to look bigger” during the charge.RELATED VIDEO: Ron Burgundy Is Back! Will Ferrell Reprises IconicAnchormanCharacter on Every Late Night ShowMcKay and Ferrell, 54, worked together on numerous films throughout their careers in Hollywood, includingStep Brothers,Talladega Nights, andThe Other Guys, and also served as partners in their Gary Sanchez Productions company.However, after being in business together for 13 years, Ferrell and McKaydecided to go their separate waysand dissolve their partnership in 2019. At the time, the longtime friends released a joint statement that read, “The two of us will always work together creatively and always be friends. And we recognize we are lucky as hell to end this venture as such.“Adam McKay and Will Ferrell in September 2014.George Pimentel/GettyIn an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterin October, Ferrell opened up about no longer working with McKay, revealing partly why they split.“Adam was like, ‘I want to do this, and this, and this.’ He wanted growth and a sphere of influence, and I was just like, ‘I don’t know, that sounds like a lot that I have to keep track of,’ " Ferrell admitted. “To me, the potential of seeing a billboard and being like, ‘Oh, we’re producing that?’ I don’t know. … At the end of the day, we just have different amounts of bandwidth.”
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Adam McKayis opening about a scary incident that happened on the set ofAnchorman 2nearly eight years after the film premiered.In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterthat was published on Wednesday, McKay, 53, was asked what he thought of the fatalRustshooting that took the life of cinematographerHalyna Hutchins. After describing the on-set tragedy as his “greatest single fear as a producer and a director,” he told the story of a “really scary” “near accident” on set ofAnchorman 2involvingWill Ferrell.“It was a scene where Ron Burgundy was going to hang himself. It was a silly joke,” theDon’t Look Updirector started. “For a half a second, the rig didn’t operate properly and there was actual tension on the rope, but then it gave way and Will was OK. Thank God no one was hurt. We were sick about it for two days. We said, ‘All right, let’s stop. Let’s have a meeting.’ “Craig Barritt/GettyNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.TheBig Shortdirector went on to describe another incident on the set of the firstAnchormanmovie involving one of the scenes with a live bear. “The bear did a hint of a bluff charge for a second,” McKay recalled. “From that moment on, I said, ‘I will never put a live animal in a shot with an actor ever again.’ So every time I do it, it’s a composite shot because it’s not worth it.“According to the U.S.National Park Service, a bluff charge is “meant to scare or intimidate,” and a bear will “pull itself up to look bigger” during the charge.RELATED VIDEO: Ron Burgundy Is Back! Will Ferrell Reprises IconicAnchormanCharacter on Every Late Night ShowMcKay and Ferrell, 54, worked together on numerous films throughout their careers in Hollywood, includingStep Brothers,Talladega Nights, andThe Other Guys, and also served as partners in their Gary Sanchez Productions company.However, after being in business together for 13 years, Ferrell and McKaydecided to go their separate waysand dissolve their partnership in 2019. At the time, the longtime friends released a joint statement that read, “The two of us will always work together creatively and always be friends. And we recognize we are lucky as hell to end this venture as such.“Adam McKay and Will Ferrell in September 2014.George Pimentel/GettyIn an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterin October, Ferrell opened up about no longer working with McKay, revealing partly why they split.“Adam was like, ‘I want to do this, and this, and this.’ He wanted growth and a sphere of influence, and I was just like, ‘I don’t know, that sounds like a lot that I have to keep track of,’ " Ferrell admitted. “To me, the potential of seeing a billboard and being like, ‘Oh, we’re producing that?’ I don’t know. … At the end of the day, we just have different amounts of bandwidth.”
Adam McKayis opening about a scary incident that happened on the set ofAnchorman 2nearly eight years after the film premiered.
In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterthat was published on Wednesday, McKay, 53, was asked what he thought of the fatalRustshooting that took the life of cinematographerHalyna Hutchins. After describing the on-set tragedy as his “greatest single fear as a producer and a director,” he told the story of a “really scary” “near accident” on set ofAnchorman 2involvingWill Ferrell.
“It was a scene where Ron Burgundy was going to hang himself. It was a silly joke,” theDon’t Look Updirector started. “For a half a second, the rig didn’t operate properly and there was actual tension on the rope, but then it gave way and Will was OK. Thank God no one was hurt. We were sick about it for two days. We said, ‘All right, let’s stop. Let’s have a meeting.’ "
Craig Barritt/Getty
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
TheBig Shortdirector went on to describe another incident on the set of the firstAnchormanmovie involving one of the scenes with a live bear. “The bear did a hint of a bluff charge for a second,” McKay recalled. “From that moment on, I said, ‘I will never put a live animal in a shot with an actor ever again.’ So every time I do it, it’s a composite shot because it’s not worth it.”
According to the U.S.National Park Service, a bluff charge is “meant to scare or intimidate,” and a bear will “pull itself up to look bigger” during the charge.
RELATED VIDEO: Ron Burgundy Is Back! Will Ferrell Reprises IconicAnchormanCharacter on Every Late Night Show
McKay and Ferrell, 54, worked together on numerous films throughout their careers in Hollywood, includingStep Brothers,Talladega Nights, andThe Other Guys, and also served as partners in their Gary Sanchez Productions company.
However, after being in business together for 13 years, Ferrell and McKaydecided to go their separate waysand dissolve their partnership in 2019. At the time, the longtime friends released a joint statement that read, “The two of us will always work together creatively and always be friends. And we recognize we are lucky as hell to end this venture as such.”
Adam McKay and Will Ferrell in September 2014.George Pimentel/Getty
In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterin October, Ferrell opened up about no longer working with McKay, revealing partly why they split.
“Adam was like, ‘I want to do this, and this, and this.’ He wanted growth and a sphere of influence, and I was just like, ‘I don’t know, that sounds like a lot that I have to keep track of,’ " Ferrell admitted. “To me, the potential of seeing a billboard and being like, ‘Oh, we’re producing that?’ I don’t know. … At the end of the day, we just have different amounts of bandwidth.”
source: people.com
