Ferrell has previously taken on goofy sporting roles in films like Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Blades of Glory, Semi-Pro, and Kicking & Screaming. The upcoming esports epic will be most similar to Talladega Nights, per Variety.
The film is said to feature Ferrell as the aging member of a professional esports team, defying convention by remaining competitive despite the young up-and-comers around him. Although we don’t know whether Ferrell will feature as part of a famous team or a fictional one, nor what game he’ll be playing, we are told that real professional teams Fnatic and Evil Geniuses are in talks to play a part in the film.
Perhaps that means we’re looking at a Dota 2 movie, as that is one game those two teams have competed against each other in.
The choice of game used in the film will be an interesting one. Although multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBA) like League of Legends and Dota 2 are some of the most played in the world, because of their limited prevalence on consoles, they still lack a lot of mainstream crossover. That could mean the Ferrell movie will stick to a game like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which would offer a broader understanding, but perhaps we will see something like StarCraft II take center stage instead.
Although we don’t know who else will be involved in this film, fans are already placing bets that John C. Reilly will make an appearance. Confirmed contributors currently include Michael Kvamme and Jordan Dunn as writers, who previously worked on SpongeBob SquarePants 3 and Phantom Halo respectively.
Production companies already signed on to the project include Gary Sanchez Productions, Mosaic, and Gravity Squared.
