'Anchorman 2' to shoot in 2011

Anchorman 2 is due to start filming in February 2011, according to reports.

Adam McKay, the writer and director of the 2004 original, revealed that Steve Carell, Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd have all signed up for the sequel.

He told MTV: "Graciously, Steve and Paul and everyone agreed to cut their price to come and do the sequel, which you don't see very often in Hollywood - and cut their price substantially. But even with that, it's just a budgetary thing with Paramount in terms of how much they'll give us to make it.

"We had an idea and we contacted Steve and Paul and David Koechner and Christina Applegate and checked in with everyone and they were all game for it. The stage we're at now is talking to Paramount and trying to get the money to do it."

McKay confirmed that the shoot is likely to kick off early next year now that a rough storyline has been drafted.

He explained: "The '80s angle is more the frame of it. We have this other, bigger, crazier idea that's really more what it's about, which I can't say. Our thinking was there's just no way the second one is going to be as good as the first, because the first one is the first one.

"So our idea is if we're going to do a second one, we better go for it and try some insane stuff and we'll be enjoying it and that way it can't be half bad."