Christina Applegate said she initially declined her role in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy because the offer was so low.
The 2004 comedy and its 2013 sequel, both directed by Adam McKay, starred Will Ferrell, Steve Carell and Paul Rudd as a team of news anchors who welcome an upstart reporter (Applegate) into the male-dominated world of 1970s broadcast news.
Appearing virtually on Wednesday’s episode of The View, the Emmy-winning actor, 54, said: “When they came in with the initial offer, it was, you know, a little... offensive.
“And I said I can’t. I know my worth, and I can’t do that,” Applegate shared. In her harrowing new memoir, You with the Sad Eyes, the Dead to Me star revealed that Ferrell and McKay gave up some of their salaries to ensure she was paid what she was worth.
“They wanted me bad enough, and they said, ‘Well, we’re gonna chip in’,” Applegate told The View hosts. “And thank god they did because it was one of the best experiences of my entire life. It was such a lesson.”
Remembering her time on the 2004 comedy, she said: “I had never done improv before, and learning from that group of dudes — that is the masterclass that people paid for.
“Steve Carell taught it, and Adam McKay developed an entire new way of doing it with his group. So to get in there and have that happen was just absolutely magical, and it’s been invaluable to me and my career.”
By the time Applegate starred in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, she had already had her breakout role in the seminal sitcom Married with Children, followed by major roles in the two-season sitcom Jesse and the 2002 romcom The Sweetest Thing.
She later returned for the 2013 Anchorman sequel, Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.
When co-host Sara Haines praised her performance as “natural”, Applegate responded: “Oh, you think I was natural? I was so scared every day of my life when Adam McKay would be like, ‘Now just do whatever you feel like doing’. I’m like, ‘I want to say what you wrote. That would be nice. I don’t want to make stuff up’.”
Applegate, who announced she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2021, is currently on a press tour for her debut memoir, out now.
You with the Sad Eyes, which The Independent’s Adam White hailed as a “remarkable, authentic achievement”, details the actor’s history of abuse, violence and self-loathing.
