Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)
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After being fired from his prestigious news network, Ron Burgundy joins a 24-hour news cycle and creates a sensationalist newscast.
The story
In 1979, Ron Burgundy and Veronica Corningstone are co-anchors for a prestigious news network in New York City. When Ron is fired for his sloppy performance and Veronica is promoted, Ron leaves in a jealous rage. Six months later, struggling with depression in San Diego, Ron accepts a job with GNN, the world's first 24-hour news network. He reassembles his old news team to compete against a rival anchorman. To win, Ron decides to broadcast what the people want to hear rather than what they need to hear, devising a sensationalist and patriotic newscast that quickly becomes a massive hit.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1979, Ron Burgundy and Veronica Corningstone are co-anchors in New York City. After Ron is fired for his sloppy performance and Veronica is promoted, Ron leaves in a jealous rage. Six months later, a depressed Ron takes a job with GNN, the world's first 24-hour news network. He reassembles his old team—Champ Kind, Brian Fantana, and Brick Tamland—and they win a ratings bet against Jack Lime by creating a sensationalist, patriotic newscast. They are promoted to primetime, where Ron begins dating GNN's manager, Linda Jackson. However, Ron's success leads him to neglect his son, Walter, and alienate his friends. During a celebration, Jack causes Ron to suffer a head injury that leaves him blind. Ron isolates himself in a lighthouse until Veronica visits with Walter. Ron bonds with his family and rehabilitates a small shark named Doby. After Veronica reveals she was hiding an experimental procedure to restore his sight, Ron gets his vision back and returns to GNN. When an exclusive story breaks, Ron chooses to leave his post to attend Walter's piano recital, declaring that news should inform, not entertain. This leads to a massive battle with rival news teams, which ends in an explosion that kills everyone except Ron and his friends. The film ends with Ron spotting Doby at a beach wedding.
- First release year
- 2013
- Runtime (minutes)
- 118
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Adam McKay
- Writers
- Will Ferrell · writer; Adam McKay · writer
- Cast and characters
- Will Ferrell · Ron Burgundy; Steve Carell · Champ Kind; Paul Rudd · Brian Fantana; David Koechner · Brick Tamland; Christina Applegate · Veronica Corningstone; Fred Willard · null
- Genres
- comedy; satire
- Themes
- Satire of 24-hour news; Workplace sexism and racism; Parental neglect; Fame and ego
- Tone and mood
- Bawdy; Wacky; Manic; Loony
- Premise and plot tags
- Sequel; Comedy; Satire; Media; Journalism
- Franchise connections
- Anchorman
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews, with critics noting its uneven structure but praising its humor and satirical take on the 24-hour news cycle. It was a commercial success, grossing $173.6 million worldwide on a $50 million budget.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 6.42/10 · scale: 10 · review count: 200; Metacritic · score: 61 · scale: 100 · review count: 40; CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A+ to F
- Production trivia
- Miller Lite reintroduced its original packaging for the duration of the film's theatrical release because it was contemporary with the film's setting.; The film was originally intended to be released on December 20, 2013, but the date was moved up two days.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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