PERRIER, TALLADEGA NIGHTS: THE BALLAD OF RICKY BOBBY

He signals his appearance by playing the jazz tune lurking on the Pit Stop bar jukebox. He speaks with an accent that our hero thinks makes him sound like a dog with peanut butter on the roof of its mouth. He is openly gay French Formula One driver Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen), who dreams of moving to Stockholm and creating a currency cats and dogs can use. The pitch for Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby was simple:“Will Ferrell as a NASCAR driver.” Thus was born one of the best motor racing films ever made, and certainly the funniest (not including Sylvester Stallone’s Driven). The producers worked with the sport’s sanctioning body in LA, Ferrell and writer/director Adam McKay figuring they couldn’t make the film without having NASCAR on board. “We were real adamant up front that our goal wasn’t to make fun of NASCAR. We wanted to have fun with NASCAR,” Ferrell told ESPN. “We said give us the inside jokes from the people who do this for a living and we’ll roll with it.” Nonetheless, it proved a hard sell for some of the sport’s big players, and only two drivers made noticeable cameos. So all credit to Perrier® for allowing its famous art nouveau logo on Girard’s car (the #55 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 385bhp, Edelbrock 4x4 Hi-Rise manifold, Holley 4150 carburettor). Donald Trump, of course, thinks this film is a documentary. Jason Barlow