'Step Brothers' Ferrell, Reilly reunite as duo

LOS ANGELES -- Bob Hope and Bing Crosby might be on the road to nowhere if they tried to team up today the way they did in old Hollywood.

Today's funny folks reunite now and then, like Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in "Step Brothers," a follow-up to their 2006 comedy "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby."

But cynical audiences now might carp at perpetual pairings that were a movie staple in the days of Hope and Crosby, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy or Bud Abbott and Lou Costello.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon or Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson have hung around together on screen or popped up in cameos in each other's movies, but even they have to be mindful of moviegoers who gripe that Hollywood dishes out too much of the same old thing.

"It became a stigma, which is kind of unfair," Ferrell said in an interview alongside Reilly. "Could Hope and Crosby exist today without getting, like, here they go, another 'Road' picture? Let me guess, 'Road to Bali.' They'll probably open with a song, then they'll get in trouble, then more of the same. You'd just get picked apart."

Adam McKay, director of "Step Brothers" and "Talladega Nights," said escalating salaries also can make it uneconomical to pair up top comedy stars, who can pull in $20 million a movie.

"One of the reasons that this all came together again is that Will is such a cool guy. A lot of the bigger actors or comedians, they don't want to share with another person," Reilly said. "That's why so many of these movies are one-man-show kind of situations, and Will is much more like a theater actor in that way. He's willing to share the stage."

"Step Brothers" casts Ferrell and Reilly as middle-aged losers -- unemployed slackers, one living with his dad (Richard Jenkins), the other with his mom (Mary Steenburgen). When their parents wed, the two become instant family, sibling rivalry springing up from the start.

Sharing the stage was the bread-and-butter for some comedy stars in old Hollywood. Along with duos, there were comedy teams such as the Marx Brothers, the Ritz Brothers and the Three Stooges that worked as inseparable entities.

Modern Hollywood has had some instances of comedy actors teaming up several times beyond mere sequel reunions, among them Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor and Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi.

Informal ensembles also spring up, such as the gang of improvisers in Christopher Guest's flicks or the troupe in the Judd Apatow comedy machine.

"I wish there were more people with that attitude of like, it's fun to see this collection or people or these two guys together," Ferrell said.

Added Reilly: "I would work with people I know over and over if I had my choice. There's a few directors I've met that I really love. There's a few actors that I've met that I really love, and if I did nothing but movies with those people for the rest of my life, it would be great."