February 22, 2014 - 13:12 AMT
“Anchorman 2” comedy gets R-rated re-release with new jokes

"Anchorman: The Legend Continues" will be back to theaters next week. In an unusual move, Paramount decides to release a new version of "Anchorman 2" starting February 28. While the original is PG-13, this upcoming version will be rated R with 763 new jokes added to make it raunchier, AceShowbiz reported.

"For one week only, Feb. 28., we have a brand-new version with 763 brand new jokes," Will Ferrell said. "We did alternate takes and originally the movie was four hours long and they played with the idea of splitting it into two movies but that didn't really work, so we just had a second editor working the whole time with alternative jokes."

The actor revealed the re-release plan during a visit to "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" recently. He explained what to expect, "It's the same movie, it's 20 minutes longer, there's a musical number we had to cut from the original one - little treats like that."

"When my editor told me we had a whole different version of the movie that was more than two hours long with nearly 800 new jokes, I was shocked. But when Paramount said they were actually going to put it in theaters, I did an 1950's spit take. If you're a hardcore Anchorman fan go see this. If you're not, stay very far away," said director Adam McKay in a statement.

Unused footage is usually added to the DVD/home video version. "It's crazy," the director told New York Times. "Normally, you'd think I'd be the one asking for a new release." Titled "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues: Super-Sized R-Rated Version", the new version will play in 1000 theaters. "This is a stitched-up, Frankenstein version," he said. "You'll either love it or hate it."