Before SNL & Step Brothers, a young Will Ferrell grew up in Irvine, California and attended University High School.
Birthdate: July 16, 1967
High School: University High School
Yearbooks: 1986
Who is Will Ferrell?
John William Ferrell is one of the most famous comedy actors of all time. His filmography is sure to make any movie or TV lover reminisce, with a lead role in films that will have you rolling on the floor laughing like Elf or Step Brothers.
A young Will Ferrell got his big break on Saturday Night Live after making an impression on the show’s producers with his improv and impression work in the comedy group the Groundlings. During his seven years on SNL, Ferrell became a household name thanks to his wide-range of iconic impersonations from George W. Bush to Alex Trebek to Fidel Castro.
During and post-SNL, Ferrell has starred in, wrote, and produced a wide-range of comedy films, some of which are timeless classics while others may not have aged as gracefully. He undoubtedly holds a place in our hearts as one of the funniest comedians of the last 30+ years.
What to Know About Will Ferrell
You can get to know the real Will Ferrell below, but at a glance:
- Suburban SoCal forged his humor: Will Ferrell attributes his ‘boring’ suburban upbringing and attendance of the Irvine, CA schools as key to tapping into his humorous-side.
- A big break on Saturday Night Live: A long tenure on SNL from 1994 to 2001 helped Ferrell go mainstream, especially with his iconic impersonations of people like George W. Bush capturing the world’s attention.
- Tons of comedy classics: Movies like Step Brothers, Elf, and Anchorman earned Ferrell a place in the ‘Frat Pack’ group of iconic late-’90s, early 2000s comedians, and a permanent rapport as a leader in comedy today.
Will Ferrell Education
Growing up in Southern California paved Will Ferrell’s way to his Hollywood career. He spent his entire childhood in Irvine, California before getting a BA at the University of Southern California.
Ferrell attributes his early school days in Irvine, especially third grade, as pivotal to him finding his sense of humor:
“Growing up in suburbia, in safe, master-planned Irvine, there was no drama so we had to create it in our heads. My main form of entertainment was cracking my friends up and exploring new ways of being funny. I didn’t have to have the survival mode instinct like other comics, who grew up in tough neighborhoods. I had the opposite. For me, I grew up in Mayberry, and the humor broke the boredom. And there was a lot to make fun of”
Where did Will Ferrell go to elementary and middle school?
Will Ferrell attended elementary school at Culverdale Elementary before going to Rancho San Joaquin Middle School in Irvine, CA. These years were pivotal in his later success.
According to his Wikipedia, he admits that in third grade “he realized he could make his [schoolmates] laugh if he pretended to smash his head against the wall, or if he tripped and fell on purpose, and said it was a great way to make friends.
Where did Will Ferrell go to high school?
A teenage Will Ferrell spent his formative years attending University High School. He was highly active in his high school community
- kicking for the varsity high school football team
- acting as a captain on the basketball team
- playing soccer and
- being a member of the high school council
His comedic wings began to spread in these years too. He would do comedy skits over the school’s intercom with permission from his principal, and was highly active in school talent shows performing stand up, earning him one of his most fitting accolades ever: “Best Personality” in his senior superlatives.
Where did Will Ferrell go to college?
Ferrell attended college at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, getting his Bachelor of Arts in sports broadcasting.
His knack for making people laugh continued in college, with his reputation on campus revolving around pranks like dressing as a janitor and walking into friends’ classes and streaking along with his fellow fraternity brothers in Delta Tau Delta.
As an alumni, he worked with former USC football coach Pete Carroll to perform for the team during the season by doing motivational stunts. In 2017, he received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from USC.
Will Ferrell Then Vs. Now: From the ‘80s & ‘90s to Today
Check out Will Ferrell’s teenage photos from his high school yearbook, and compare them to his various looks over the decades from the 90s and 2000s up to present.
What is Will Ferrell Known For?
Early Career
As soon as Will Ferrell graduated from USC, he knew that he didn’t want to go into sports broadcasting. After working a few miscellaneous jobs, he took his mother’s advice to move to Los Angeles and pursue comedy in 1991. He auditioned and received a spot in the comedy group The Groundlings, where he mastered improvisation and leaned into his passion for impersonations.
By 1994, he successfully auditioned for Lorne Michaels and received a recurring spot on the SNL cast, in which he had a tenure for seven years. At that time, he started dabbling with small television and film roles, getting cast in TV series like Grace Under Fire and Living Single, and acting in movies like Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) and A Night at the Roxbury (1998).
Hollywood Stardom
In the early 2000s, shortly after leaving SNL, Will Ferrell brought us some of his all time greatest acting roles that will hold a special place in our hearts forever. His titular role in Elf (2003) remains a yearly watch at Christmas in households around the world.
Other comedy classics filmed in that era include Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Step Brothers, and Talladega Nights that will leave you rolling on the floor laughing to this day.
His collaborative films with other star comedians of the era earned him a spot in the ‘Frat Pack’ alongside other big ‘90s and 2000s comics like Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Steve Carrell, and Jack Black.
Will Ferrell Family Members
A Wife He Met in Acting Class
Will met Swedish actress Viveca Paulin in 1995 at an acting class, and they got married in 2000. The couple has three sons, born in 2004, 2006, and 2010.
A Father in Entertainment & Teacher Mother
Will Ferrell’s dad Roy Lee Ferrell Jr. was a keyboard and saxophone player in the Righteous Brothers musical duo, while his mother was a teacher at the elementary school Old Mill School as well as Santa Ana College. They divorced when he was eight.
His father’s sporadic and inconsistent work schedule made Will crave a more stable job when he was a kid. He attributes his mother as encouraging him to move to L.A. after college to pursue a career he was passionate about, leading to him joining the Groundlings and eventual comedy/acting career.
A Younger Brother With Acting Roles of His Own
His younger brother Patrick Ferrell has made cameos in some of Will Ferrell’s all-time classics, including as a security guard in Elf.
Where Does Will Ferrell Live?
Will and his wife Viveca Paulin split their time between New York City and Orange County, CA.
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Start searching the yearbook archive today to look up your fave celebs, or even search for photos of yourself or your friends and family.
Sources:
- Adam Chitayat, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>
- via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_at_the_2024_Toronto_International_Film_Festival_5_(cropped).jpg
- Eva Rinaldi, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>
- via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_2013_(cropped).jpg
- Eva Rinaldi, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>
- via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_2013_(cropped).jpg
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=50&?s=80640
- More photos here with reference links: https://www.classmates.com/blog/celebrity/will-ferrell/?srsltid=AfmBOoq-z1hpMJ0gbtVx38yyZcTpj4WqhAVYexBx4nqLO-C41bzxAxFE
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=284&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=130&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=144&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=168&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=168&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=186&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=186&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=40&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=46&?s=80640
- https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/208383?page=94&?s=80640
- Freshman Year: https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/4182922756?page=203&searchTerm=will%20ferrel
- Freshman Year: https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/4182922756?page=116
- Then – All photos with reference links: https://www.classmates.com/blog/celebrity/will-ferrell/?srsltid=AfmBOoq-z1hpMJ0gbtVx38yyZcTpj4WqhAVYexBx4nqLO-C41bzxAxFE
- Now – Adam Chitayat, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_at_the_2024_Toronto_International_Film_Festival_5_(cropped).jpg
- Eva Rinaldi, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>
- via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_2012.jpg
- Adam Chitayat, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>
- via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Ferrell_at_the_2024_Toronto_International_Film_Festival_3.jpg
