Deauville to honour Will Ferrell

Will Ferrell, the US actor, screenwriter and producer behind Anchorman and Stepbrothers, is to be honoured by France’s 40th Deauville American Film Festival (Sept 5-15).

Festival director Bruno Barde described Ferrell as “the king of American comedy”.

“Zany, caustic, satirical, off-the-wall and over-the-top; he is all that and more - a pure delight for the audience, in the same vein as Jerry Lewis, Peter Sellers, and the Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker trio,” he added.

The former Saturday Night Live star, who voiced the villain in this year’s The Lego Movie, recently wrapped in production on the comedy Get Hard, directed by Etan Cohen and set for release in March 2015.

Ferrell will join US actress Jessica Chastain and director James Cameron, who will present his latest film Deepsea Challenger 3D, in the seaside Normandy town.