The Christmas comedy film Elf was released in 2003, and since then, has become a Christmas classic. It stars Will Ferrell as a human who was adopted as a baby by elves and discovers in adulthood that he isn’t really an elf. He then goes on a quest to New York to find his biological father. As a tall man dressed in an elf costume who isn’t familiar with how the world outside of the North Pole works, however, hilarity ensues.
Since the film was released, the star-studded cast has gone on to star in many other projects. Many cast members, in fact, were already major stars prior to the film. Meanwhile, some big names had small cameos in the movie, like Jon Favreau, who played the family pediatrician who confirmed that Buddy was indeed Walter’s biological son (Favreau also directed the film) and Peter Billingsley, who starred in A Christmas Story as a child, who played the head elf, Ming Ming.
But what about the main cast? Where are they all now? Here’s a look at what each main cast member has been up to over the last 16 years.
Will Ferrell (Buddy the Elf)
After Elf, in which he played the lead role, Ferrell’s star continued to rise as he began appearing in more hot comedy movies. Notable was Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy in 2004, followed by Talladega Nights in 2006, Step Brothers in 2008, Blades of Glory (2007), and, well, the list goes on and on.
Considered part of the “Frat Pack,” which includes influential comic actors who emerged in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, Ferrell was named the best comedian of 2015 by British GQ Magazine and got his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that same year. Most recently, he has been working behind the scenes as an executive producer of hit series like Drunk History, Dead to Me, and Succession.
James Caan (Walter Hobbs)
Playing surly children’s book publisher and Buddy’s biological father Walter, Caan had been acting for decades prior to the movie. His most notable early role was as Sonny Corleone in The Godfather. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg for this A-list actor.
After Elf, Caan starred in the TV series Las Vegas, which aired from 2003-2008, and voiced a character in the animated film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and its sequel. He has some projects in the works today and has continued to act steadily since then. His most recent credit is in the British crime drama Out of Blue.
Bob Newhart (Papa Elf)
A comedic legend, at 90 years old today, Newhart is still going strong. After playing Buddy’s adoptive elf dad in the film, the comedian, known for his deadpan style and The Bob Newhart Show, continued to act consistently through the ‘00s and ‘10s.
He is best known to a new generation for his guest-starring role in the series The Big Bang Theory as Professor Proton. That’s his last acting credit since the show ended in 2018, though Newhart did appear in a sketch at this year’s Emmy Awards to humorously confirm that he wasn’t dead yet.
Edward Asner (Santa Claus)
Playing the jolly St. Nick himself, Asner, now 90, was another big-time actor long before this film, known most for his role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. After Elf, he served as the voice of Carl in the animated film Up and continued to act in small screen roles.
With a ton of projects in the works, he has most recently been seen in Dead to Me, as the narrator of animated sitcom American Dad! (along with other voice roles on that show), and in an episode of Netflix series Grace and Frankie.
Mary Steenburgen (Emily Hobbs)
This actor, singer, and songwriter had an illustrious career long before playing Walter’s wife and Buddy’s stepmother in Elf. After that movie, she starred in The Brave One, Step Brothers, The Proposal, and The Help. She also had a recurring role on Justified in 2014 and from 2015 to 2018, starred in The Last Man on Earth.
She continues to work as a singer/songwriter and is an active humanitarian and close friend of Hillary Clinton. Her most recent acting credits include The Conners, Bless the Harts, and Flannery, and she has an upcoming TV project called Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.
Zooey Deschanel (Jovie)
Deschanel broke onto the Hollywood scene in the 1999 film Mumford, and Elf was one of her first major roles, where she played an employee at Gimbel’s and Buddy’s love interest. Since then, however, she has racked up a long resume in films like The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, 500 Days of Summer, and Bridge to Terabithia. Her most known role, however, is as the lead character in Fox sitcom New Girl.
Also a model and singer-songwriter, she co-founded the female-focused website HelloGiggles, which was sold to Time, Inc. in 2015. Her last known project was a Christmas album she released in 2016 called Christmas Party alongside M. Ward through their collaboration She & Him.
Daniel Tay (Michael Hobbs)
The child actor, now 27, played Michael, Walter’s son and Buddy’s half-brother. This role marked Tay’s acting debut, and he appeared in American Splendor that same year. He has also appeared in Artie Lange’s Beer League and Brooklyn Rules and has done voice work, including the voice of Pedro De La Hoya in Billy and Bill Blue in Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony.
Tay left acting, it appears, not having appeared in anything since 2007. His last known occupation back in 2018 was as an SAT tutor and bilingual editor who speaks Mandarin, jobs he took on after graduating from Yale.
Faizon Love (Wanda)
Playing the manager at Gimbel’s who mistakes Buddy for a man in a costume who is employed there for the Christmas season, Love has a number of acting credits to his name, including The Parent ‘Hood and BET’s The New Edition Story.
He has several new acting projects in the works and was most recently seen in the TV series Step Up: High Water, as well as in a few episodes of the series Black-ish from 2015 to 2017 playing Sha, an old friend of patriarch Dre (Anthony Anderson).
Peter Dinklage (Miles Finch)
Dinklage, who played the best-selling children’s author who had that memorable scene attacking Buddy in the movie (“call me elf one more time!”) is, of course, best known today for his role as Tyrion Lannister in the wildly successful HBO series Game of Thrones.
After Elf, he continued to work steadily in movies like Underdog, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri. Game of Thrones wrapped up earlier this year, and he shows no signs of slowing down. Dinklage has many projects in the works and was most recently seen in Between Two Ferns: The Movie and voicing the character of the Mighty Eagle in The Angry Birds Movie 2. He also notably played Herve Villechaize in the TV movie My Dinner with Herve.
Amy Sedaris (Deb)
This funny woman is known today for voicing the character of Princess Carolyn in the Netflix animated series BoJack Horseman and for her role in Strangers with Candy. In Elf, she played Walter’s jovial secretary Deb.
Today, she hosts her own series At Home with Amy Sedaris and has appeared in series like Divorce, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and Star vs. The Forces of Evil. She also continues to do voice work, with a long-running stint as the voice of Ma Angler on kids cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants.
Artie Lange (Gimbels Santa)
Playing the Gimbel’s Santa, who Buddy angrily reveals to all of the kids that he isn’t the real Santa, Lange went on to star in Artie Lange’s Beer League and release several books. After taking some time off, he co-hosted The Nick & Artie Show, later renamed The Artie Lange Show, and had his own podcast from 2015-2017.
The former MADtv cast member continues to perform stand-up comedy and acts from time to time, most recently in the HBO series Crashing.