'Get Hard' Stars Kevin Hart, Will Ferrell Dish on Movie, John Mayer & If They’d Survive Real Jail (EXCLUSIVE)
In Hollywood, Kevin Hart and Will Ferrell are known as comedic actors, but in "Get Hard," which hits theaters this Friday, March 27, they are known as "Mayo and Cholocat," their alter-egos who try to gain street cred and ultimately "get hard."
Ferrell plays a millionaire hedge fund manager, James, who is accused of fraud and has to do time in the slammer. While he has 30 days to get his affairs in order, he realizes that he's in deep water and doesn't have the street smarts or edge to make it in San Quentin.
Desperate for help, he turns to Darnell (Hart), his car wash guy-turned-"incarceration specialist" to prep him for a life behind bars. But James couldn't be more far off with his assumptions, for Darnell is a hard-working, squeaky clean small business owner who has never been arrested.
In what seemed like a 10-minute personal comedy show, Latin Post caught up with the dynamic duo who have been stirring up "trouble" lately in their own hilarious ways.
The hilarious duo also left this writer in stitches during the exclusive interview that started out like this...
"Como te llamas? Me llamo Kevin," Hart said.
When asked how they were doing, Ferrell answered in Spanglish, hilariously saying: "Perfectly simpático!"
The energy and the chemistry between the two was contagious and this writer took it as a personal triumph to actually make both Hart and Ferrell laugh.
So did Ferrell gain any street cred?
"Well, it remains to be seen. Once the movie is out in theaters, I don't know how to handicap it, but I do expect a major amount of street cred," he joked. "I'm thinking that it's going to change my life."
Their monikers, Mayo and Chocolat, in the film came while Ferrell was improvising and referencing Oprah and Dr. Phil, according to Hart.
In the film, Ferrell mentions that he "forgot the gin and juice," and he admits that in real life, he may just have to indulge in a little gin and juice!
"Not today, it's Sunday. I don't drink gin and juice on Sunday, but tomorrow, I'll be right into it," Ferrell laughed. "You know what I have never had gin and juice. I need to experience gin and juice! I had a 40 when I was eight, so that's no big deal."
In one of the many hilarious scenes, Hart tries to teach Ferrell the "mad dog face" to fend off fellow prison mates, but Ferrell is so distraught that he can only come up with the "sad dog face."
"It was just brilliant, brilliant writing, I wish we could take full credit for it, but we had great writers and producers on set and they gave us a foundation to work from," Hart added. "But at the end of the day, you have me react to Will Ferrell's genius that had nothing to do with 'mad-dogging' at all."
Ferrell, who's also known for his role in the telenovela spoof "Casa de mi Padre" (which also stars Genesis Rodriguez and Adrian Martinez), sort of uses his Spanish -- or, better yet, Spanglish -- skills in the film, saying: "I am not a p*to," when reacting to a comment from one of the fake inmates.
"That was once again such a funny scene where Kevin Hart puts a pay phone in my house to approximate what's it's like to make phone calls from the inside," Ferrell said.
There is also a hilarious fight scene that takes place on a yacht and Ferrell and Hart show off some serious moves. The scene isn't too long, but actually took five days to shoot.
"I am an incredible athlete, I am not even bragging," Ferrell added.
There is also a crazy guitar solo in the film by Ferrell where he performs alongside singer/songwriter superstar John Mayer.
"John Mayer was a great sport in the movie. It was hilarious," Ferrell said. "We also need to thank Jimmy Fallon, 'The Tonight Show' for letting us to shoot on set and be a part of the film. That was a really funny call back in the movie."
If this (being sentenced to prison) were to happen in real life, how would Ferrell handle it?
"I don't know what I would do. I think it would be over," Ferrell explained. "The only way I could survive on the inside was if I had bunch of fans of the movies I had done. I have no idea. I would crumble."
Last week, "Get Hard" premiered at the South By Southwest Film Festival and during a Q&A with director Etan Cohen, an audience member claimed the film was "racist," and perpetuated stereotypes, which later led to more discussion of how it handled homosexuality.
When responding to the criticism, Ferrell didn't "crumble" at all.
"Any time you're going to do an R-rated comedy, you're going to offend someone," said Ferrell in an interview alongside Hart. "But that's kind of what we do. We provoke. We prod," he explained to The Associated Press. "We also show a mirror to what's already existing out there. We're playing fictitious characters who are articulating some of the attitudes and misconceptions that already exist."
Ferrell's had a big year with his recent HBO/"Funny or Die" baseball stunts, and dressing up like Little Debbie on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." The former 'Saturday Night Live' icon is being awarded with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on March 24. Then there's Hart, who also recently released "The Wedding Ringer", and, of course, he's the host of Comedy Central's "Roast of Justin Bieber" (airing on Monday, March 30).
Needless to say, it's been quite an eventful and exhilarating couple of months for the comedic duo!
The film's description says: "Together, the two men do whatever it takes for James to 'get hard' and, in the process, discover how wrong they were about a lot of things -- including each other."
So, in the end lessons are ultimately learned by the characters, but it just takes a whole lot of satire to get there.
Check out the official trailer for Warner Bros. Pictures' "Get Hard," which hits theaters on Friday, March 27, 2015.