Will Ferrell came face to face with "Buddy the Elf, the ax murderer," and he may never be the same. The "Elf" star got a firsthand look at the life-size, animatronic Buddy the Elf decoration inspired by his iconic holiday movie when Craig Melvin and Savannah Guthrie surprised him with it on TODAY on Jan. 28.

Will Ferrell was surprised with the viral animatronic Buddy the Elf during an appearance on the TODAY show on Jan. 28.

While it may be January, the classic 2003 Christmas movie, Elf, was on the mind of the hosts of the Today show recently as they surprised their guest, Will Ferrell with a life-size version of his Buddy the Elf character.

Ferrell appeared on the Today show on Tuesday (January 28) to promote his new film You're Cordially Invited, and while there, the topic of his character Buddy the Elf from the 200