Funny or Die
Funny or Die is a comedy video website and production company owned by Henry R. Muñoz III that was founded by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Mark Kvamme, and Chris Henchy in 2007.[2] The website contained exclusive material from a regular staff of in-house writers, producers and directors, and occasionally from a number of famous contributors including Judd Apatow, James Franco and Norm Macdonald. The associated production company continues to make TV shows including truTV's Billy on the Street, Comedy Central's @midnight and Zach Galifianakis' web series Between Two Ferns.
Company type
- Film
- Television
- Internet
April 12, 2007
Will Ferrell
Adam McKay
Mark Kvamme
Chris Henchy
Mike Farah (CEO)
Many videos on the site featured well-known actors (examples include Nina Dobrev, Steve Carell, Charlie Sheen, Ryan Gosling, Patrick Stewart, Daniel Radcliffe, Sophia Bush, Mila Kunis, AnnaSophia Robb, Hilary Duff, Adam West, James Van Der Beek, Jim Carrey, Ariel Winter and Selena Gomez). Michael Kvamme, an aspiring young comedian who is also the son of Mark Kvamme, the venture capitalist who funded Funny or Die, came up with a concept for a new kind of comedy site, and the site was developed by Randy Adams. After the site was funded by his father, Michael Kvamme wrote a screenplay for Will Ferrell[3] and founded Global eSports Resources[4] in partnership with the Saudi Arabian Federation of Electronic and Intellectual Sports.[5]
Funny or Die launched on April 12, 2007 with the site's first video, "The Landlord". "The Landlord" has received over 84 million views and features Ferrell confronted by a swearing, beer-drinking two-year-old landlord.[6] In June 2007, they received venture capital funding from Sequoia Capital,[7] and in June 2008, they announced a partnership with HBO.[8] On August 3, 2016, Funny or Die shut down one of its California offices, reducing its headcount by 30% to 95 employees, with the announcement coming just two months after the new CEO, Mike Farah, took office.[9]
Henry R. Muñoz III bought Funny or Die for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition was announced in Variety on May 12, 2021. Muñoz purchased Funny or Die from the company's former stakeholders, which included AMC Networks, WarnerMedia and Sequoia Capital.[10]
Online presence[edit]
Unlike other viral video sites, members of Funny or Die are encouraged to vote on videos which they view, with the options of "Funny" or "Die". The video then gets a score of the total percentage of people who voted the video "Funny". If the video receives an 80% or greater "Funny" rating after 100,000 views, it gets an "Immortal" ranking. If the video receives a 20% or less "Funny" rating after 1,000 views, it is relegated to the Crypt section of the site.
The Funny or Die staff can also select a rating of "Chosen One", which disables voting for a video, merely saying "Chosen One" instead.[11]
Live events[edit]
Funny or Die Comedy Tour[edit]
In February 2008, Funny or Die launched "Will Ferrell's Funny Or Die Comedy Tour Presented by 'Semi-Pro'", in conjunction with the promotion of the movie Semi-Pro. The tour featured Ferrell, members of the FOD Team and comedians Zach Galifianakis, Demetri Martin, Nick Swardson and Andrea Savage. Adam McKay and Will Arnett served as tour announcers. The eight-city tour hit college campuses in Kansas, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, North Carolina and New York. The tour ran February 4–24, 2008.[42]
Hoaxes and controversies[edit]
On March 2, 2014, two promotional videos were released on a YouTube channel supposedly controlled by HUVr Tech, a company claiming to have invented a hoverboard much like those in the Back to the Future film trilogy.[61] The videos included demonstrations of the board by celebrities such as Tony Hawk and Moby. Two days later the project was revealed to be a hoax perpetrated by Funny Or Die, after the video's costume designer posted the experience on her online resume.[62]
