Will Ferrell

Picking the best Will Ferrell movie is a bit like picking your favorite kid (I’d imagine if I had kids). You like them all for different reasons, you know? Will Ferrell went on an absolute tear throughout the 2000s, releasing some of the most popular and beloved comedies of the modern movie era.

There are so many options that if someone named their favorite Will Ferrell movie, you could probably agree with almost any of them. But let’s go ahead and get the answer out of the way. Will Ferrell’s best movie is the 2008 comedy Step Brothers and here’s why.

Why Step Brothers Is Will Ferrell’s Best Movie

While the immature humor might be grating for some people, it’s going to be pitch-perfect for others. Your mileage may vary with Step Brothers, but for me, the movie is filled with quotables and hilarious moments. And really, isn’t that what the best Will Ferrell movie should be?

The fact is, we don’t really get too many Will Ferrell roles like this anymore, as his movie roles are less frequent, and he tends to do more producing nowadays.

Step Brothers is a Will Ferrell comedy you can come back to time and time again and have a good laugh. The fact is, Step Brothers is so funny, the last time I saw it I laughed so hard I fell off my dinosaur. And I really can’t give a more ringing endorsement than that.

Why Anchorman And Talladega Nights Aren’t Will Ferrell’s Best Movies

To take on the titanic task of determining which Will Ferrell movie is his best, you have to cycle through all of his classic roles and make sure to give credit where credit is due.

A Night at the Roxbury definitely took his SNL fame and put it to good use, starting his long streak of top-notch comedy efforts. But to call it his best movie might be a little bit of a stretch.

Zoolander was a great role for Ferrell, but that was more of a Ben Stiller showcase.

Now, the first big hurdle in the Ferrell lineup is definitely Old School. This could be the favorite Ferrell choice of many. After seeing that movie, is it possible to hear “The Sound of Silence” without thinking of Ferrell in a pool?

Finally, when you come down to it, you have to pick between what I’d argue are Ferrell’s heaviest hitters — Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and Step Brothers.

Now, if you caught me on a different day, I could probably be convinced to choose Anchorman or Talladega Nights. In addition to Step Brothers, these movies all have Will Ferrell front and center, doing what he does best.

Playing a ridiculous character and delivering lines with perfect goofball energy and timing.

Step Brothers makes the smart choice of giving Ferrell a co-star who is every bit his comedic equal in John C. Reilly. Sure, Anchorman has the great ensemble of the Channel 4 news team and John C. Reilly is Ferrell’s best friend/partial nemesis in Talladega Nights, but in Step Brothers, the two share the screen equally and it’s perfection.

If you had tried pairing any other two actors as massive man-children and giving them the same premise and lines, it wouldn’t have landed nearly as well as Step Brothers did.

Joke for joke, Step Brothers is just the best of the bunch. It’s also just a little bit weirder than the other entries, which I think gives it more longevity.

Critics Hate Step Brothers, But They Are Wrong

Do the critics agree with me that Step Brothers is the best Will Ferrell movie? No, they do not. Not at all.

The Rotten Tomatoes critic score for Step Brothers is sitting at a 55%. The audience score is better, at a 69%, though even that is far too low.

The critic score for Anchorman, widely regarded as one of the funniest movies ever made, is only 66%. So what do they know?

Audiences who have watched it more recently on streaming platforms, seem to rate it much, much more favorably. On Amazon Prime, for instance, Step Brothers has a fabulous 4.7/5 rating…

Will Ferrell’s Best Movie Brought In $128 Million At The Box Office

As for the box office, the movie did just fine. It brought in over $128 million worldwide. But it’s a Will Ferrell comedy released at the peak of his powers, so this isn’t too surprising.

You can’t base your choice for the best Will Ferrell movie on how much money it makes or if the critics loved it. You just have to answer the question — did it make you laugh?

The Best Quotes From Step Brothers

“Why are you so sweaty?” “I was watching Cops.”

Dale questioning Brennan

“I’ve been called the songbird of my generation.”

Brennan

“Maybe someday we could become friends. Friends who ride majestic, translucent steeds, shooting flaming arrows across the bridge of Hemdale.”

Brennan

“This is going to sound weird but, for a second, I think you took on the shape of a unicorn.”

Dale

“That’s so funny; the last time I heard that, I laughed so hard I fell off my dinosaur.”

Dale

The Best Step Brothers Memes

Coming in at number one is the often used, and always hilarious, Best Friends meme. It’s this scene, more than any other, which embodies why Step Brothers is Will Ferrell’s best movie…

A little more obscure but still infinitely funny is the songbird meme. Useful for any time someone critiques your singing…

Step Brothers Sequel?

There’s never been any word about a Step Brothers sequel with Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly returning. But it’s been something fans have wanted basically since the movie first hit the big screen.

There are a number of different ways a Step Brothers 2 could go with these dudes, especially with how much they’ve aged since the original one came out.

Fans can only hope.