Gawker: defamer, the landlord

The Landlord 2027

Mark — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 21:08:31 EDT

· The above clip, kind of an introduction to this new My Damn Channel site (finally, a place for funny videos on the internets!), is notable mostly because we never thought we'd see an Adam McKay impression in our lifetime, much less a really good one.
· Paramount's trying a different strategy for drumming up buzz for Cloverfield. We kind of like this new direction better than what's come before. [via Gone Elsewhere]
· We're not even going to try and explain what's going on here.
· Even Natalie Raitano's got a blog now. Thanks, Rosie, for making it all seem so easy.
· RIP, Junkiness. You will be missed.

'The Landlord's' Drunken, Swearing Baby: The Interview

Mark — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 15:14:19 EDT

Since yesterday's first wave of mainstream media stories attempting to unravel the mysteries of Will Ferrell viral video sensation The Landlord (e.g., "Who is that totally adorable, hilariously inebriated tyke? She's a star!" and "What combination of shadowy vanity production company and venture capital firm is behind this FunnyOrDie.com situation?"), the clip has surged from 2.5 million to nearly 5 million views on the new video sharing site alone. The ensuing onslaught of media requests seems to be keeping Ferrell cohort Adam McKay busy, who offered People an exclusive interview with The Landlord's Pearl The Drunken, Swearing, Rageoholic Baby:

How old are you, Pearl? I 2 years old. But when I wear my Dora shirt I look one-and-a-half.

What are some of your favorite things to do when you not hassling people for the rent? I like to put my hands in the fountain. I watch Wonderpets. I like to buy old houses and flip them for a profit so I can buy boxes of Gallo wine.
Are you always so angry?
Will Ferrell no pay rent. I want my money. That's why I mad.

The short's staggering popularity should accelerate the arrival of the inevitable backlash, ranging from accusations of selling out after the coming announcement of Pearl's attachment to a Universal comedy in which she'll play the world's youngest, angriest, most crapulent postal carrier (her commanding presence on that doorstep did not go unnoticed), to reactionary pieces in the media decrying the actions of misguided parents who are spiking their babies' formula with grain alcohol, videotaping the results, and posting them to YouTube, hoping their own offspring can mimic the breakout star's meteoric success.

Behind Will Ferrell's 'Cursing Baby' Video [People]

Behind The Scenes Of 'The Landlord'

Mark — Tue, 17 Apr 2007 13:02:40 EDT

Since its debut late last week, Will Ferrell and Adam McKay's The Landlord has ridden the surefire blockbuster formula of mixing the world's biggest comedy star with a potty-mouthed, alcoholic baby to nearly 2.5 million views, an achievement of viral video dissemination not seen since Andy Samberg and Justin Timberlake cut holes in a pair of boxes and then inserted their engorged genitals into said boxes. This explosive success has sent the media scrambling to figure out who or what is behind Funny Or Die, the video-sharing site that launched with the Ferrell clip. THR tracked down the shadowy puppetmaster behind the new web venture for comment:

Ferrell and McKay employed their alter ego, Gary Sanchez, to talk about their first foray into original Web content.

Sanchez, an enigmatic character described as a Paraguayan ex-NFL player who sounded on the phone awfully like McKay with a Spanish accent, said that video starring Hollywood heavyweights will appear regularly in the "featured" section of FunnyOrDie, but "the meat and cabbage of the site will be the real peoples."
He added that the site's principals will regularly scour the site to look for new talent who will then be whisked away and "put on a private jet to Paraguay."

Meanwhile, the LAT managed to get an out-of-character McKay on the record about the video, the streamlined online development process which allowed the project to go from "Hey, Will, wouldn't it be funny if my baby got drunk and threatened you?" pitch to completed production in under an hour, and address concerns about how the short's breakout child star handled the demands of the role.

Reached by phone, writer-director Adam McKay, Ferrell's longtime friend and collaborator (most recently they did "Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy" and "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby"), confessed to being behind the video and insisted there was no corporate entity involved. "It's just us," McKay said. "That's the fun — this isn't brought to you by GE or Viacom or whoever."
The video took about 45 minutes to make, McKay said. "Will and I were just screwing around and it was like, hey, that's a good idea, let's film that."

McKay plays Ferrell's friend in the short and is also the father of Pearl (it's her real name). [...]

As for his daughter playing the dissolute landlord, McKay said it was no big deal. "She's in that phase right now where you can repeat anything to her and she won't remember it."

With young Pearl at this sweet spot in her mental development, McKay and Ferrell should fast-track the inevitable sequel (in this brave new world, it could premiere later this afternoon) before The Landlord II's more demanding, Fanning-level material, in which the now crack-addicted baby-slumlord returns to collect the rent with a loaded firearm, can emotionally damage their in-house talent.

Sanchez's Web dare: FunnyOrDie [THR]
Will Ferrell cracks up the Net [LAT]