2003 film directed by Jon Favreau
Elf is a 2003 American Christmas comedy film directed by Jon Favreau and written by David Berenbaum. It stars Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf, a human raised by Santa's elves, who learns about his origins and heads to New York City to meet his biological father. James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner and Bob Newhart appear in supporting roles.
Elf was released in the United States on November 7, 2003, by New Line Cinema. It became a major critical and commercial success, grossing $228.9 million worldwide against a $33 million budget. Ferrell's performance as Buddy, in particular, was praised by critics. The film inspired the 2010 Broadway musical Elf: The Musical and NBC's 2014 stop motion animated television special Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas. It has been hailed by many as a modern classic and is often listed as one of the best Christmas films of all time.
Plot summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.