What the Stars of ‘Elf’ Have Been Doing Since

Ferrell starred in “Elf” the same year “Old School” premiered.

In 2002, Ferrell ended his run on “Saturday Night Live” to prepare to make a name for himself in film.

In 2003, Ferrell starred in “Elf” and the R-rated comedy “Old School.”

Ferrell told Entertainment Weekly in 2007 that before taking on the role of Buddy the Elf, he requested that the movie remain lighthearted and took cues from the Tom Hanks film “Big” in creating his character’s childlike persona.

Ferrell’s career has seen lots of success post-“Elf.”

Since bringing Buddy to life, Ferrell has gone on to act in over 20 full-length feature films, including “Anchorman,” “Kicking and Screaming,” “Step Brothers,” and “Get Hard.”

He’s also gone behind-the-scenes as an executive producer, working on hit shows like Netflix’s “Dead to Me” and HBO’s “Succession,” as well as top-rated films like “Booksmart.”

He also starred in “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga” (2020) and has continued down his producing path. He also starred alongside Ryan Reynolds in the Apple TV film, “Spirited” (2022).

Deschanel wasn’t the first choice to play Jovie.

“Elf” was the ninth feature-length film that Deschanel had appeared in since launching her acting career in 1998.

At the time “Elf” debuted, Deschanel was a relatively new actress in Hollywood with a few films under her belt, including  “All the Real Girls” and “Almost Famous.” 

In a 2018 interview with Variety, Deschanel said that she was the second choice for the role and ultimately starred in the movie as Jovie when the film’s first choice dropped out.

And in 2003, she told liveabout.com that she believed she mostly got the part because she could sing. 

Deschanel became the star of a popular TV show a few years later.

Post-“Elf,” the actress starred in several major movies, including “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” “500 Days of Summer,” and “Trolls.”

In 2006, she formed a two-person indie band with M. Ward called She and Him. The pair has released multiple studio albums together.

Deschanel landed her most notable role as Jessica Day on the Fox show “New Girl” in 2011. The series ended in 2018 after seven seasons. 

In 2020, she lent her voice to the character Bridget in “Trolls World Tour” and appeared in the short “Katy Perry: Not the End of the World” as a lookalike of the pop star. 

Newhart has continued to act in comedies.

Although he has continued his work on TV, Newhart has only appeared in one feature-length film since the release of “Elf” — the 2011 movie “Horrible Bosses” starring Jason Sudeikis and Jason Bateman.

Newhart has also made frequent appearances on shows like TNT’s “The Librarians” and CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory.”

In 2017, he reprised his role as Papa Elf for a local TV commercial. 

He also played professor Proton on the CBS “Big Bang” spin-off “Young Sheldon.”

Steenburgen would star alongside Ferrell again in 2008.

“Elf” wouldn’t be the last time Steenburgen would appear in a film with Ferrell. In 2008, the duo reunited in the comedy “Step Brothers,” with Steenburgen playing Ferrell’s mom once again.

Steenburgen has appeared on TV series like CBS’ “Joan of Arcadia” and Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” 

She was also in the films “Four Christmases,” “The Proposal,”  “The Help,”  and “A Walk in the Woods,” among many others.

In 2020, she appeared in the much-anticipated holiday movie “Happiest Season,” and has since been on recent seasons of several series, like “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.”

The actress is also set to appear in the upcoming film, “Book Club 2: The Next Chapter.”

Even years later, Asner didn’t slow down.

Asner has kept his Hollywood career thriving. Since 2003, Asner has been credited with over 60 roles, including the TV short “Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas.”

He appeared on Netflix’s “Dead to Me” and Super Channel’s “Forgive Me.” 

Recently, he was in the movies “Tiger Within” and “Rain Beau’s End.”

In August 2021, Asner died of natural causes at the age of 91.