Man trouble

DADDY’S HOME | It’s Ferrell versus Wahlberg...

“If this guy was my wife’s ex, I’d put a bullet in my skull,” deadpans Thomas Haden Church in Daddy’s Home, the new comedy from Horrible Bosses 2 director Sean Anders. He’s referring to Dusty (Mark Wahlberg), the muscular bad boy who has reserved radio exec Brad (Will Ferrell) twisting himself into all kinds of knots.

As husband to Sarah (Linda Cardellini) and stepdad to Dusty’s kids, Brad finds himself fighting for the ankle-biters’ affections when Dusty drops by for a visit. It doesn’t help that Dusty has the bod of a prize fighter and the attitude to match. “Looks like we’ve got ourselves a good old-fashioned dad-off,” he says while demonstrating his obvious superiority by doing shirtless pull-ups without breaking a sweat.

It’s been five years since Wahlberg and Ferrell first teamed up on The Other Guys, and where that film revealed Wahlberg to be a surprisingly adept comedian (“Will had to keep up with me,” he joked in 2010, “all the curve balls I was throwing at him”), Daddy’s Home comes after two Ted flicks and a cameo in the Entourage movie. With Wahlberg now splitting his time between big-budget actioners ( Transformers: Age Of Extinction) and a host of unapologetic rib-ticklers, it’s about time he and Ferrell jumped back in the comedy ring.

“We all have that adolescent side to us,’’ he says. “I’m very serious with my work, but I like to cut loose with my buddies, pulling pranks on each other.” And there are plenty of pranks in Daddy’s Home, as Brad falls prey to Dusty’s conniving ways. There’s drunk basketball, celebrating Christmas in April, skateboarding mishaps, and Ferrell going for a ride on a Harley-Davidson (one which doesn’t end well). This is going to hurt... JW

ETA | 26 December Daddy’s Home opens later this year.