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Adam Sandler Replacing Mark Wahlberg in 'Three Mississippi' Comedy

by Ethan Anderton
May 31, 2012

Last month we heard that Adam McKay finally being able to get Anchorman: The Legend Continues off the ground meant that he would no longer be directing the football comedy Three Mississippi starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg in the story of a feud between two families over an annual Thanksgiving touch football game that has existed for 50 years. McKay has been replaced by That's My Boy director Sean Anders (also rewriting the film with co-director John Morris), and they're bringing Adam Sandler with him who Vulture says will replace Wahlberg on the comedy due to a couple reasons that came up recently.

Back in February we heard about Wahlberg being involved in Peter Berg's next film Lone Survivor that's based on the memoir of Marcus Luttrell about how the Navy SEAL becomes the lone survivor after an ambush in Afghanistan. Initially Universal was financing and distributing the film, but then Battleship bombed, and the studio decided it would only distribute. The film found funding somewhere else with Emmet/Furla Films picking up the check, but they only agreed to do so if Wahlberg made the project his next film. And now that leaves him unable to fit into the schedule for Three Mississippi, ready to shoot around this fall, and Ferrell apparently didn't want to wait another year to get the project off the ground.

This is disappointing for a number of reasons. First, while it's interesting to finally have Sandler (returning to football again after The Waterboy) and Ferrell do a comedy together for the first time, the former funnyman just doesn't deliver great comedy anymore. Second, one of the driving points behind this film was reuniting Wahlberg with Alec Baldwin, who was also going to star in the film, because the two had such great rapport in The Departed. And finally, Wahlberg and Ferrell were a great team in The Other Guys, and not having them reunite for another comedy is a bit of a drag, especially with Adam McKay only producing now. Oh well. Maybe this will turn out all right after all. Stay tuned.

Filed under Casting, Movie News

From around the web:

Bcopes11

I am so dissapointed. for me it went from a must see, to maybe catch in on cable
- beevis
  
  you beat me to the post - i couldn't agree more....except i won't even give it a look on cable, now. AS is a horrible actor.
mooreworthy

The tandem of wahlberg and ferrell is priceless. Sandler on board will be funny, but not special. I will wait for a trailer before badmouthing it.
- beevis
  
  did you read the above article?.....wahlberg is out - sandler is replacing him.
  - mooreworthy
    
    Yeah, my response meant that now that sandler is in, it wont be special, just ordinary.
    - beevis
      
      sorry - i had the wrong interpretation.
      - mooreworthy
        
        No worries, my comment was vaguely infered.
ASFan

Adam McKay is still involved. He's a producer along with Ferrell.
- http://www.firstshowing.net/ Ethan Anderton
  
  I meant to make that more clear, sorry if that was confusing. I'm still much less excited for this comedy now.
  - ASFan
    
    I'm actually more excited. Sandler and Ferrell together is something we haven't seen before. Now, if Sandler's company ends up being the primary producer in place of McKay and Ferrell's company, then I'll get much less excited.
Ehsan Davodi

Pity But Team seems good still and Mark Wahlberg Decision for Lone Survivor Over The This is Subtle & Precise Although a little disappointed form Peter Berg but wish the bests for both movies.
Guy who comments on things

pitty for Ferrell having to work with Sandler now instead of Mark.
SuicidalOptimist

Blah. I have the same problem with Adam Sandler that I always had with Robin Williams; I hate how both of them tend to go way over the top in their comedic performances, which is incredibly annoying rather than entertaining. I love them in dramatic roles, though. I wish Sandler would make more stuff like Punch Drunk Love, Reign Over Me or even Funny People. He is great when he's more low-key. His latest movies have been quite horrible, and I have to wonder if he's either strapped for money (I'd doubt it) or just doesn't give a shit anymore. Surely, he can't truly believe an abomination like Jack&Jill is funny. Right?!? That being said, seeing how Ferrell is usually the most outrageous one of the bunch in a comedy, maybe Sandler will be the more reasonable and less high strung counterpart this time. I guess I'll have to wait and see.
- grimjob
  
  Punch Drunk Love was great! Love both of them in dramatic roles as well.
Rain Spider

Sandler blows now. Just watching the trailers for That's my boy makes me sick. He's trying way to hard to be funny.
- ASFan
  
  Well usually Sandler doesn't try at all.
Chazzy

Well there goes the only reason I had for watching this. I cannot stand Sandler.
ASFan

I love that now people think this is just a Sandler movie as oppose to a Ferrell movie, or Sandler/Ferrell movie, even though Ferrell and McKay are producers on this while Sandler is not. Sandler's involvement is only bad if he gets creative control.
boopy

BOTH ADAM AND WILL ARE INCREDIBLY TALENTED MEN AND THIS MOVIE IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!! CAN'T WAIT
nolapasta

That's My boy was a disaster. The directing was terrible and Sandler was terrible. I feel bad for Will ferrell when he was originally set up with a possible-genius project working with McKay and Wahlberg again, only to be stuck with this shit in the end.