Will Ferrell is set to receive the Comedic Genius Award at this year's MTV Movie Awards, the network announced Wednesday.
The star of "Anchorman," "Old School," "The Other Guys" and the upcoming "Anchorman 2," as well as one of the founders of Funny Or Die, will be the first person to get the Comedic Genius Award from the long-running awards show.
"Will Ferrell epitomizes what it means to be a comedic genius and it's only fitting that he should be the inaugural recipient of this award," said MTV president Stephen Friedman in a statement. "Over the course of his extraordinary, 17-plus-year career, he has entertained audiences across the globe with an impressive array of laugh-out-loud performances on air, online and in films. Simply put, Will Ferrell is 'kind of a big deal.'"
The actor first became famous as a cast member on "Saturday Night Live," where he played characters such as President George W. Bush, Alex Trebek, a Spartan cheerleader and Robert Goulet. His breakout role in "Old School" led to Ferrell becoming one of the most successful "SNL" alumni ever.
Recently, Ferrell starred in the Spanish-language "Casa de mi Padre" and the political satire "The Campaign." He's also known as a supporter of Democratic causes and politicians, most recently putting out a humorous ad for Los Angeles mayoral hopeful Eric Garcetti.
Ferrell has been nominated for ten MTV Movie awards, from Best Kiss (with Sacha Baron Cohen in "Talladega Nights") to Best Musical Performance (in "Anchorman").
The MTV Movie Awards, hosted this year by Josh Horowitz and Rebel Wilson, will air at 8:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, March 5.