The beloved 'SNL' alum is using his star status to help shine a light on a charity that's near and dear to his heart.
Will Ferrell is bringing the funny, while offering his support to an important organization!
On Oct. 6, the A-lister hosted “Will Ferrell’s Best Night of Your Life” at L.A.'s Greek Theatre, where he reprised his most iconic character — Ron Burgundy — to help raise money for Cancer for College, a charity that helps cancer patients find the funds to get a higher education.
The organization was started 25 years ago by Ferrell’s USC fraternity brother, Craig Pollard, who overcame not one but two bouts with cancer while attending USC with the future Saturday Night Live star.
“There’s so much focus on getting through… surviving cancer that a lot of families, they don’t have resources for college,” the 51-year-old actor recently explained to ET.
Over the course of the charity’s existence, they’ve raised $3 million in scholarships for cancer patients, thanks to events like Ferrell’s recent variety show, which also featured appearances by Jimmy Kimmel, James Corden and Conan O’Brien.
The evening even featured a music performance from none other than Coldplay’s Chris Martin, who provided a stirring acoustic rendition of the group’s hit track, “Viva La Vida” — with a little help from the Anchorman star.
Mid-song Ferrell marched on stage, banging away at a cowbell as the audience erupted in applause. As diehard fans know, this was a recreation of the cherished SNL sketch in which he played the cowbell performer of the real-life band Blue Oyster Cult as they attempted to record their classic track, “(Don't Fear) The Reaper,” with some help from fictional producer Bruce Dickinson (host Christopher Walken), who simply couldn’t get enough cowbell.
While discussing Cancer for College, Ferrell admitted that the sketch was his own creation, which was nearly scrapped during the writing process.
“I tried it once earlier that year, it didn’t work at the read-through,” he explained. “And I brought it back. Christopher Walken, I ruined his career.”
Head here to learn more about the charity and how to donate.
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