Hearing a name like Peter Farrelly, you might just think, “Ah yes, one-half of the Farrelly brothers.” They’re responsible for hysterical comedies like Dumb & Dumber and Kingpin. And now, Peter Farrelly is back with yet another slapstick offering. Sure, it’s far from his Academy Award-winning Green Book, but it’s Farrelly’s second collaboration with Zac Efron following 2022’s The Greatest Beer Run Ever. Their second collab, Ricky Stanicky, hits Prime Video this week and features other A-listers, such as Oscar nominee William H. Macy. Here, he plays Efron’s hotheaded boss in the new R-rated comedy, which ultimately centers on a group of friends’ terrifying ordeal: to try and quite literally bring an imaginary friend to life, to turn their lifelong lying into a hilarious truth.

We recently caught up with Farrelly and Macy in a paired in-person interview in Los Angeles to learn more about the behind-the-scenes of a riotous offering led by John Cena, Jermaine Fowler, and other household names. They also dished on their other projects in the works, such as Macy’s upcoming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

Macy ‘Always Wanted to Work With’ Farrelly

Given that this is Farrelly’s second film with Efron starring, it’s safe to assume the first go-around was somewhat rewarding. “He borrowed a lot of money, and I really didn’t have any choice but to give him another job,” Farrelly joked to MovieWeb. “I want to get paid back. He lost a lot of bets on set.”

In all seriousness, Farrelly continued:

“He’s awesome. I think he’s a great actor, a great guy, and he was a natural. I was lucky to get him. He’s really great. Cary Grant, kind of.”

Given how long Macy and Farrelly have been in the Hollywood game, it’s hard to believe that Ricky Stanicky is their first time working together. “For years, I’ve wanted to do some of the broader stuff, and I’ve always wanted to work with Pete,” Macy told us. “It was a thrill, and I loved the script. I loved it on the first reading and said ‘yes’ about two seconds after I read the end.”

Macy has played a wide variety of roles, dating back to his Oscar-nominated turn in Fargo and beyond. More recently, millennials probably know him as Frank Gallagher from Showtime’s hit series Shameless, as the raging alcoholic father of a handful of offspring. In Ricky Stanicky, Macy instead plays a more dignified, wealthy business owner by the suave name of “Summerhayes.” So what would happen if Frank Gallagher and Summerhayes were forced into the same room? “They kind of were,” said Macy in reference to his ultimately wide-ranging performance for Ricky Stanicky. “[Director] Pete keeps painting me as this highbrow actor. I’ve done some really wacky stuff, and I love Summerhayes. It’s a curveball; you don’t see it coming. And the whole concept is very funny and makes you laugh.”

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Something About Mary and the Next Apes

After watching a laugh-out-loud flick like Ricky Stanicky, you can’t help but imagine it was a fun movie to shoot behind the scenes. Looking back on Farrelly’s career, we were curious if there might be any project in particular that trumps them all.

“I’ve never had a bad shoot. I’ve never had one where I thought, ‘That was a nightmare.’ It’s honestly because I’m so grateful that we’re able to do it, honestly,” Farrelly told MovieWeb. “But on the other hand, shooting There’s Something About Mary in Miami, December to March, was one of the great times in my life. I mean, we’re down there, it’s winter, but it’s beautiful. We were in South Beach, hanging around. You got Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller. And it’s just a good bunch of people. Jonathan Richman, the musician, was there the whole time. I love that part… There was a good chance it’s not going to work… And then, thank God, when we tested it, it worked. It was the Greek chorus. There was nothing better than that.”

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And looking ahead, it’s wonderful to know that Farrelly and his brother Bobby are still working together. “My brother directed a movie I wrote with Ricky Blitt, friend of mine, about a guy who writes a letter to Santa, but he’s dyslexic and it goes to ‘Satan.’ And Satan shows up,” said Farrelly in describing the upcoming film Dear Santa. “Jack Black plays Satan.”

Meanwhile, for Macy, fans of the revived Planet of the Apes franchise simply cannot wait for the upcoming Kingdom installment. Macy stars in that one, having shot the movie right before Ricky Stanicky. “It was the sublime to the ridiculous. Both were shot down in Australia,” he said. “So I went from a survivalist movie to air-dicking [Stanicky reference] in one month. It’s a great, great way to make a living. Let’s face facts.”

Ricky Stanicky premieres globally on Prime Video on Mar. 7.