It was hard to miss the celebrations online tonight, as Will Ferrell appeared on Conan in character as Ron Burgundy and announced that, after years of rumors, an Anchorman sequel was officially happening. Later updates said that Paul Rudd, Steve Carell and David Koechner were also set to return their roles, meaning the idiotic news team that coped so poorly with feminism would be back onscreen, bringing Sex Panther, jazz flute and loving lamp back into our lives at last.
But there was another lead character in Anchorman, one who wound up marrying Ron Burgundy at the end of it, and there's no mention of her so far. Was Christina Applegate not part of the negotiations to get this movie made? Is she not considered crucial to the success of Anchorman 2? Given that she's currently starring in a hit sitcom, Up All Night, you'd think that would give her enough cred that they'd want her back on board.
And it's not like Applegate was a burden on the movie the way the guys thought Veronica Corningstone would be on the news team. She really held her own out there, pulling off insane lines like "It smells like a used diaper diaper filled with Indian food" or my favorite, "I'm Veronica Corningstone. Tits McGee is on vacation." And while they might have plans for the sequel that are too insane to make room for a married Ron Burgundy, I still think there are a lot of ways to work Applegate back in with the male gang-- why not send her off chasing some insane news story with them, or if they decide to move forward in time, let her model the worst 80s newscaster fashions?
For all I know, Applegate is in active negotiations to join the cast, and Adam McKay and Will Ferrell have her as part of the hopefully fantastic script they're cooking up. But this is just my official plea to get a girl in on the action in Anchorman 2, and to make it Christina Applegate-- she was a key part of the success of the first film, and the sequel won't be the same without her.
