He is a master of improv. For this list, we’ll be looking at Steve Carell’s funniest and most memorable ad-libbed moments in film and television.
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for Steve Carell's funniest
00:09and most memorable ad-libbed moments in film and television.
00:24For this list, we're looking at Steve Carell's funniest and most memorable ad-libbed moments
00:29in film and television.
00:31What's an unscripted Steve Carell moment you love?
00:33Let us know in the comments.
00:3510.
00:36Michael the Tourist – The Office
00:46How do you film a recognizable star like Steve Carell in a place as big as New York City?
00:52Very carefully.
00:53In this Season 2 episode, Michael Scott heads up to the Big Apple for a meeting with the
00:57new CFO, David Wallace, and his not-so-Smitten boss-slash-love interest, Jan.
01:03But first, he takes in some of the classic New York sights, such as Rockefeller Center,
01:08Times Square, and...Sbarro?
01:16To film these segments, Carell and the crew had to act fast to prevent the growing crowds
01:20around him from getting too big, so they were mostly improvised.
01:25But with a wit as quick as Carell's, pressure isn't a hindrance.
01:28It's a bonus.
01:299.
01:30Dirty Dancing – Date Night
01:40A middle-aged suburban dad and a dancer's pole is already a comedy goldmine, but leave
01:45it to Steve Carell to keep going.
01:47In this hit comedy, Carell and his on-screen spouse, Tina Fey, find themselves on stage
01:52at a seedy underground club.
01:54All the while, they're having a great time.
01:56It's a lot of fun.
01:579.
01:59His and Fey's improv experience meant plenty of riffing occurred, but it's doubtful that
02:04anyone, on-set or in the audience, would be able to pull it off.
02:08It's a lot of fun.
02:098.
02:10The Dirty Dancing Club – Date Night
02:18In this hit comedy, Carell and his on-screen spouse, Tina Fey, find themselves on stage
02:24at a seedy underground club.
02:27Anyone, on-set or in the audience, expected Carell to go as far as he did here.
02:31In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Fey said that Carell's licking of the pole was completely
02:36unscripted.
02:37His on-screen reaction is just as priceless, completely selling the genuine disgust he
02:42felt.
02:438.
02:44Trance – Dinner for Schmucks
02:50An awkward situation turns into a side-splitting one in this comedy from Austin Powers and
02:56Parents director Jay Roach.
02:58At the titular dinner, Barry Speck, a guest of Paul Rudd's character Tim Conrad, is disturbed
03:03by the presence of Zach Galifianakis' Thurman Murch, Barry's boss and wife-stealer.
03:14Thurman thinks he has mind-control powers, and Barry is none the wiser.
03:18As Barry sits nervously, Thurman, cloak and all, gets him to say something we've never
03:23heard at any dinner party.
03:27Several of the other actors start cracking up, and we can't blame them.
03:35Roach has said that these were his favorite improvised moments in the film.
03:447.
03:45The Long Pause – The Office
03:57The Office is full of simultaneously excruciating and hilarious moments, and the cast knows
04:03how to sell that discomfort.
04:05In the script for this early episode, writer Paul Lieberstein instructed Carell to hold
04:09quote, the longest pause in television history, as he struggles to think up a surprise that
04:15he promised staff earlier.
04:16Carell took that note very seriously, going above and beyond by pausing for two and a
04:22half minutes.
04:27While the aired version is much shorter, you can see Carell breaking a sweat from his elongated
04:36pause.
04:47The lesson?
04:48Ask Steve Carell, and you shall receive.
04:516.
04:52Finger Through the Zipper – The Office
04:55No one knows Michael Scott better than the man who plays him.
04:58That means understanding when to tap into his more inappropriate side.
05:02After Phyllis reports a run-in with a flasher, Michael unwisely tries to lighten the mood
05:07by sticking his finger through his front zipper.
05:09The rest of the cast had no idea this was coming, and you can see them doing their best
05:14not to lose it.
05:18Brian Baumgartner, who plays Kevin, is visibly giggling in the background, while John Krasinski
05:24looks seconds away from breaking.
05:26Michael Scott might not know much about workplace sensitivity, but Steve Carell definitely knows
05:31a lot about improvising.
05:445.
05:45Telling Off Chani's Boss – Anchorman 2 – The Legend Continues
05:50Carell's star was still rising when he played the scene-stealing, good-natured weatherman
05:55Brick Tamland in the first Anchorman.
05:57But he was a bona fide movie star when the sequel came out nearly a decade later.
06:01In Anchorman 2, Brick is paired with the equally unique Chani Lasname, played by Kristen Wiig.
06:08After their not-so-meet-cute, things explode in a screaming and paper-throwing rage against
06:14Chani's boss.
06:23Director Adam McKay realized there was something missing from the scene in the script.
06:27He said,
06:29Director Adam McKay realized there was something missing from the scene in the script.
06:32And his stars came up with this hilariously chaotic moment.
06:35If nothing else, it shows that no one can scream quite like Steve Carell.
06:424.
06:43The Kiss – The Office
06:59The third season of The Office wasted no time in making us wince.
07:07In this season premiere, Michael Scott outs accountant Oscar as gay,
07:11and only makes things worse as the day goes on.
07:15If I was gay, I would be the most flamboyant gay you've ever seen.
07:21I would be leading the parade covered in feathers and just I'd be waving that rainbow flag.
07:28In an attempt to save face, he gets way too close to Oscars,
07:32planting an excruciating and unreciprocated kiss on his lips.
07:36If the cast looks shocked, it's because they were.
07:39While Michael kissing Oscar was in the script, it was only supposed to be on the cheek.
07:45It's definitely not the show's most romantic kiss, but it's arguably the most memorable.
08:033.
08:04I Love Lamp – Anchorman – The Legend of Ron Burgundy
08:08Not many actors can turn three words into countless laughs,
08:13but Steve Carell has some very special talents.
08:15When Will Ferrell's Ron Burgundy discusses love with his fellow newsmen,
08:19Brick Tamland declares his love for various inanimate objects around the room.
08:27By the end, he sounds quite choked up.
08:29This baffling but hysterical moment was completely a Carell creation.
08:36Director Adam McKay had encouraged the cast to improvise,
08:39and Will Ferrell's response was also ad-libbed.
08:43Brick supplies many of Anchorman's best moments,
08:46but this is arguably his most iconic.
08:49Or, in Brick speak, we love scene.
08:522.
08:53Tearing Up – The Office
08:55In this case, it wasn't Steve Carell surprising his Office castmates.
08:59Instead, it was them surprising him.
09:13As his final Dundies comes to a close,
09:16Michael Scott is unexpectedly serenaded by his colleagues.
09:20In a Dunder Mifflin spin on Seasons of Love from Rent,
09:23the Dunder Mifflin staff sing about the man, his memorable moments,
09:27and all 9,986,000 minutes he spent at the workplace.
09:329,986,000 minutes
09:36That's like watching Die Hard 80,000 times
09:40Carell had no idea that this had been prepared,
09:43and his smiles and tears are all completely real.
09:47The next episode would be his last as a main character,
09:50and this scene shows how important he was to the whole series.
09:55Yeah, okay.
09:58Well, this is gonna hurt like a mother-
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10:161.
10:17Chest Waxing – The 40-Year-Old Virgin
10:20Think comedic actors have it easier than dramatic ones?
10:24We dare any thespian to go through what Steve Carell did
10:27for The 40-Year-Old Virgin.
10:34In this scene, where lead character Andy Stitzer's co-workers
10:37bring him in for some personal grooming,
10:39Carell strove for authenticity.
10:47How much?
10:48He had his actual chest waxed,
10:51a painful experience that led to hilarious reactions
10:54both from Carell and the other cast members
10:56who just cannot contain their laughter.
11:05Whenever we think of Steve Carell
11:06and how much we admire his commitment to his craft,
11:09we instantly think of Kelly Clarkson.
11:11You know what, guys?
11:13This is not a good look for me!
11:15Do you agree with our picks?
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