Will Ferrell Reprises Iconic ‘Anchorman’ Character for Netflix’s Tom Brady Roast

Will Ferrell made a surprise appearance in character as San Diego’s favorite news anchor, Ron Burgundy, during Netflix’s live roast of Tom Brady on Sunday night. Dubbed GROAT—The Greatest Roast of All Time—the telecast was part of the annual Netflix Is A Joke Fest and was touted by the streamer with the dubious distinction of being the first live, unedited roast in the form’s history.

Introduced as “a living legend, a world-class lover, and the No. 1 news anchor in all of San Diego," Ferrell took the stage as Burgundy, wearing a signature ‘70s-era leisure suit.

“My name is Ron Burgundy,” he began. “I am a very big deal but tonight is not about me. We are here to honor a champion of the gridiron, a great American, a father, a sexy man, a true Patriot—until he was not of course."

Often, though, Burgundy seemed distracted by Brady’s chiseled good looks. At one point he had to remind himself of the QB, “You hate him!” But moments later, the legendary anchor began a prosaic tribute to Brady’s beauty.

“Holy s--- this man is gorgeous," Burgundy marveled. "Look at those cheekbones. That’s a million-watt smile right there…A person could get lost in those eyes, and right now I am that person."

Burgundy continued: “Ron, pull it together. You’re a straight man. He’s making you question your sexuality. Stop looking at him. You’re here to make fun of him. Not fall in love. Concentrate!"

Getting back to the script, Burgundy went on to drastically change his tune, perhaps to make up for his earlier gushing. "I never liked you Tom,” the anchor spat.

“In all my years of watching professional football, I never saw a more boring quarterback," he lamented, saying Brady "ruined football for all of us.” Watching a Patriots game "actually made me look forward to all the fun and laughter of a Bill Belichick postgame interview," Burgundy reported.

“I mean, let’s be honest, your best years are behind you, Tom. The Super Bowls, Gisele, your movie career, it’s all done, it’s all gone. But you won’t be forgotten, you’ll always be remembered as Eli Manning’s b---ch,” Burgundy went on. “Don’t let that get you down, Tom.”

Burgundy concluded by reiterating his affection for the former QB, and taking a jab at his recent announcement that he may come out of retirement.

“Tom, it’s clear, everybody up here loves you. I love you, although it might just be lust. Could be love, we’ll never know,” he said. “I can’t wait for you to be up there on Fox Sports commentating on the game you loved, or playing for the Raiders in the playoffs, or coaching the Patriots, or whatever the f--k you’re gonna do.”

Even though he took it pretty far, Ferrell, as Burgundy, offered a break from the other presenters who went after Brady with all their might—and vitriol. RoastMaster General Jeff Ross even provoked a harsh rebuke from Brady when he joked about Robert Kraft’s 2019 arrest in a prostitution sting at a massage parlor; the charges were eventually dropped. “Don’t say that s---t again,” Brady told the famed insult comic.

The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady is currently streaming on Netflix. Both Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) and Anchorman: The Legend Continues are available on Paramount+.