Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Will Ferrell interrupt Kimmel's monologue to debut the Downhill trailer
It’s rare that Will Ferrell does the studio-mandated talk show rounds just to smile and tell late-night hosts the same amusing backstage anecdotes. Nope, Ferrell traditionally comes to play—as in play around with some new conceptual comedy bit poking fun at the whole enterprise, or just being weird. On Thursday’s Jimmy Kimmel Live, the tradition continued, complete with a partner in comedy royalty, as Julia Louis-Dreyfus teamed up with Ferrell to hijack Kimmel’s monologue for some hot Hollywood goss—oh, and to stealth debut the trailer for their upcoming movie Downhill.
First telling Kimmel that the two have a standing Thursday date dishing the latest Tinseltown rumors at the local Wetzel’s Pretzels (apparently the manager of that Wetzel’s is ghosting his co-manager, Tiffany), the pair basked in their superstar prerogative of busting onto any TV set in America at will. Brushing off Kimmel’s attempt to introduce his surprise guests (“They all know who we are,” said Ferrell, smugly), Julia and Will then turned Kimmel’s flustered question about holiday plans into an extended plug for Downhill, which looks pretty promising, to be honest. (The remake of Ruben Östlund’s acid marital comedy Force Majeure—about a marriage thrown into turmoil when the husband appears to abandon his wife and kids in the face of a rapidly approaching avalanche—is written and directed by Oscar-winners Nat Faxon and Jim Rash.)
Noting afterward that their portrait of how the underlying cracks in a supposedly solid relationship can widen and swallow everyone is debuting, appropriately, on Valentines Day, the pair deadpanned about their plans for that holiday (Brad Hall apparently has an eventful night in store), before urging people not married to Brad Hall to go out and watch their movie. Even though, as Louis-Dreyfus assured everyone, she’s not usually a big Will Ferrell guy. “I know exactly what you mean,” agreed Ferrell, perhaps having Holmes & Watson flashbacks.