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Will Ferrell answers rapid fire questions from Stephen Colbert, and it's delightfully weird

A rollercoaster of unhinged to poetic that only Will Ferrell can deliver.

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert/Youtube

This funny man likes to take the window seat while traveling to see all the "dead bodies," i.e. trees.

For those not up to speed with all things Stephen Colbert—during his Colbert Report days, the television host popularized a bit called the "Colbert Questionert," where he asked the same 15 questions (covering the ”full spectrum of human experience") to whichever celebrity guest he was interviewing at the time.

That bit lives on with the Late Show, and during the show’s April 29 episode, Anchorman star Will Ferrell was asked those trademark "ergonomically designed” questions.

His answers were every bit as unserious as you’d might expect…from declaring the “classic” salami and grapefruit on rye with a light sheen of mayo as the “best sandwich” (which, actually, does sound pretty delectable), to naming penguins as the “scariest animal (“you know the old phrase, don’t turn your back on a penguin"). You can definitely tell Colbert is working very, very hard to keep himself together.

And yet, when asked, “What do you think happens when we die?” things took a bit of a profound turn.

“What I know happens…we turn into trees.”

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

He went on to say that once that happens, you’ll still be "experiencing" things, and “contributing to the world,” but…”that’s it.”

“And you know this…how?” Colbert replied.

“I just know it,” said Ferrell before immediately dubbing Sense and Sensibility as his favorite action movie followed by a full-on spontaneous acapella duet with Colbert of Rick Astley’s "Never Gonna Give You Up”— the one song Ferrell would pick if he could only listen to one song for the rest of his life. If that’s not life in a nutshell, I don't know what is: beauty, silliness, and everything in between.

Rickroll Never Gonna Give You Up GIFfrom Rickroll GIFs


Whether you find answers to this ultimate mystery in religion, a spiritual practice, science, or simply accepting that you’ll never know, the one truth of it all is that our bodies go back into the earth in some way or fashion. Some might find this concept unsettling, while others find it deeply meaningful—so much so that they opt for biodegradable urns or pods to house their remains which are then planted with a tree, allowing the remains to nourish the tree as they decompose and it grows.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

So, while Ferrell was obviously taking on the funny man role, he also seemed to pull one of the oldest clown tricks in the book: offering poignant wisdom.

By the way, if you want to host your own little Colbert Questionert, here are the 15 questions:

  • Best sandwich?
  • What's one thing you own that you really should throw out?
  • What is the scariest animal?
  • Apples or oranges?
  • Have you ever asked someone for their autograph?
  • What do you think happens when we die?
  • Favorite action movie?
  • Favorite smell?
  • Least favorite smell?
  • Exercise: worth it?
  • Flat or sparkling?
  • Most used app on your phone?
  • You get one song to listen to for the rest of your life: what is it?
  • What number am I thinking of?
  • Describe the rest of your life in five words?
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Hysterical ads with Will Ferrell show what happens when we bring our phones to dinner.

A somber family sits around the dinner table. They pass dishes of food around in dark silence for a few moments before, finally, the little girl mutters, "I'm not hungry."

"I miss Daddy," she says.

"I know," her mom replies. "We all miss him."

Where's Dad? Dad (played by Will Ferrell) is ... actually sitting at the other end of the dinner table, alive and well. He's just too busy playing with Snapchat filters on his phone to bother interacting with his family.

And Ferrell plays the exaggeration to hilarious perfection:

GIF via Common Sense Media/YouTube.

The video is part of a new campaign called "Device Free Dinner."

It's meant to be a gentle reminder to all of us to be a little more present during family time. And before you go thinking this is another one of those needlessly shame-y cellphones-are-ruining-the-good-ol-days-of-how-things-used-to-be-better-in-the-past-when-I- was-a-kid or what have you, the benefits of being mindful about when we do and don't immerse ourselves in our phones are backed by some pretty powerful research.

Studies indicate we check our smartphones dozens and dozens of times per day, mostly out of pure habit, and that checking your phone can make you more anxious than usual. We spend two to five hours looking down at our devices in a given day. Another study shows that even children under 8 years old are spending up to two hours per day watching shows and playing games on mobile devices.

This deep level of distraction isn't always the best thing for building healthy relationships, especially those with your kids.

A recent study conducted on rats showed that when parents are distracted by other things during bonding time — even if the total amount of time spent together is high — outcomes for children can be worse. Simply put, the rat babies went on to "enjoy life" less than their peers.

The point of Ferrell's PSAs isn't that phones are bad — just that we should be deliberate about when we're checking them.

Most of us aren't willfully ignoring our children to mindlessly browse Facebook. And, besides, there are plenty of good and valid reasons to check your phone. We don't need to throw the baby out with the bath water, so to speak.

The idea of setting aside some family time, like dinner, however, where everyone puts down their devices for a bit and focuses on spending quality time with each other is a good one. Committing to a #DeviceFreeDinner doesn't mean you have to do it every night or that you should never have your phone on hand in case of emergency. It's just one way of making sure you're carving out some time to spend with your family — without digital interruptions or cat face filters getting in the way.

Not convinced or just need a laugh? Check out the first Will Ferrell ad spot below, then watch the other ads in the series on YouTube.

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