In 2015’s comedy Daddy’s Home, audiences met sensitive stepfather Brad (Will Ferrell) as he battled with Dusty (Mark Wahlberg) for the affections of Dusty’s children Dylan (Owen Vaccarro) and Megan (Scarlett Estevez), and their mother Sara (Linda Cardellini).
Since then, Brad and Dusty have put aside their differences and settled into a working relationship as co-dads. But their lives are thrown into chaos with the arrival for the Christmas holidays of their own fathers: the over-nurturing Don (John Lithgow) and alpha male Kurt (Mel Gibson).
Daddy’s Home 2’s writer and director Sean Anders describes the first movie as a kind of bromance, as Brad and Dusty, two very different characters, come together for the sake of the kids.
“We weren’t thinking about a sequel when we made the first movie,” he says. “But we loved the idea of the dads’ dads showing up for Christmas and adding another complicated layer to the conflict between the two of them. The idea was too good to pass up.”
In the sequel, the extended family at its heart has grown even bigger, with a new baby for Brad and Sara, and a new wife and step-daughter for Dusty.
“There’s already a lot of complicated layers to this blended family,” explains producer Chris Henchy. “And Mel Gibson and John Lithgow provide a real powder keg to fuel the insanity.”
“Mel Gibson was perfect for the role of Dusty’s father,” adds Henchy, noting that the actor brings a swagger, bravado and intensity that pairs well with Mark Wahlberg’s. “When you see Kurt, you understand Dusty. They’re father and son, and there’s a lot of testosterone and competition. A lot of the conflict and the comedy comes from Kurt reacting to what a helicopter parent Dusty has become.”
Mel Gibson and John Lithgow provide a real powder keg to fuel the insanity
Kurt is an astronaut and Gibson describes him as a hard-living, womanising guy who is still up to his old tricks even though he’s not a youngster anymore. “There’s some fun to be had with the arrested development of this character. He loves his son but he wasn’t and isn’t the ideal father, and that’s created a pretty dysfunctional relationship,” says the actor.
The polar opposite of Kurt, Lithgow’s character Don is friendly, affectionate and a man with a big heart. Lithgow says of his character: “He loves to talk, telling these conventionally dull stories that only he and Brad find exciting, jumping from subject to subject and clearing any room he walks into.”
“I completely adore this character,” Lithgow adds. “He’s one of nature’s innocents but his loquaciousness is covering up a secret.”
“As perfect as Mel is for Kurt, John is for Don,” Ferrell muses about the casting choices. “Don’s this sweet, wonderful, gregarious, emotionally secure father, who doesn’t think twice about kissing his son on the lips when he meets him at the airport. It’s all a little too much for Dusty and Kurt, who aren’t that close.”
And yet, “Dusty is a bit jealous of the relationship between Don and Brad,” remarks Wahlberg. “Dusty and Kurt get uncomfortable with expressing emotion or anything that could be perceived as vulnerability. Growing up, Kurt never told Dusty he loved him but we’re trying to get there.”
“Even though we play complete opposites, all four of us get along great, playing off each other and knowing exactly who our characters are and how they relate to the others,” says Lithgow.
“Dusty begins feeling envious of Brad’s closeness with Don but our seemingly perfect relationship falls apart halfway through. The bond between father and son is incredibly complicated, which makes for a great story and gives me a lot to play with as an actor.”
Gibson, in particular, was impressed with Lithgow’s performance: “John is amazing, and has some of the best ad libs I’ve ever heard. He starts talking and all this great stuff comes out. I’ve seen him play Winston Churchill and a creepy serial killer and here he’s doing this light comedy with equal ease.”
“It wasn’t until we got everyone in the room standing next to each other that we realised the magic of seeing Mark with Mel and Will with John,” Anders recalls.
“Apart from being great actors and each of them bringing so much to the table, they really look like their dads. They even walk a little bit like them. There’s just something about them that works so perfectly.”