Will Ferrell reveals he 'truly annoyed' Elf co-star James Caan who told him 'you're not funny'

Will Ferrell has revealed a hilarious detail about the production of one of his most popular movies - Elf.

The iconic film sees Buddy, a human raised by Santa's elves, returning to New York City after finding out he's adopted to find his biological father.

Ferrell's high energy performance as Buddy carried the film, with Buddy's side-splitting childlike antics causing chaos in all the wrong settings.

But while the Zoolander star is undoubtedly at the heart of the movie, there's one aspect which takes it to another level.

If the history of comedy has taught us anything, it's that any great clown needs a straight-man to act as a foil to their ridiculousness.

In the case of Elf, this was provided by his co-star James Caan, who played Buddy's dad.

And in a moment of life imitating art, Ferrell revealed that Caan, who passed away in 2022, didn't have to try very hard to balance out Ferrell's performance, as he actually didn't find him very funny.

Will Ferrell and James Caan in Elf (New Line Cinema)

Ferrell revealed that Caan had told him he didn't 'get' Ferrell in an appearance on the MeSsy podcast with Christina Applegate and Jamie-Lynn Sigler.

He said: “James Caan - may he rest in peace, and we had such a good time working on that movie - he would tease me.

“We’d be in between setups, he was like, ‘I don’t get you. You’re not funny. "You’re not funny.’ And I’m like, ‘I know! I’m not Robin Williams.’

"He’s like, ‘People ask me, 'Is he funny?' And I’m like, 'No, he’s not funny!' It was all with love.”

And this impacted how the characters interplayed in the movie as well, which, of course, Ferrell played into.

The SNL star said: “I love that the whole time, he’s not acting. He’s truly annoyed with me.

Will Ferrell in Elf. (New Line Cinema)

"Like, ‘Will this guy shut the f**k up? Jesus!’ So I literally drove him crazy in that movie, just acting like that kid.”

The actor went on to say that there had been different plans for Caan's character, with Buddy's stressed dad losing his temper far earlier.

Ferrell explained that Caan had changed this, saying: “He wanted to save it til that moment in the boardroom where he kicks me out and kicks me out of this life, like, ‘No, it’s gotta be this slow build.’

"And he was totally right."

When he saw the finished movie, Caan changed his mind about Ferrell's performance, with the Anchorman star recalling: "He’s like, ‘I gotta tell you, I thought everything you were doing while we were filming was way too over-the-top.

"Now that I see it in the movie, it’s brilliant.'”