All about his sons Magnus, Matthias and Axel

It looks like Will Ferrell’s kids have inherited some interesting genes!

The Step Brothers actor and his wife, Viveca Paulin, welcomed their first child, son Magnus, in 2004. Two years later, in 2006, their son Matthias was born, and their family of three expanded once again. Ferrell and Pauline completed their family in 2010 when they welcomed their youngest child, son Axel, in 2010.

Like their father, the three sons seem to like to make everyone laugh, and even recreated a scene from their father’s favorite 2003 Christmas movie, Elf, in 2025. Magnus and Mathias played the roles of his father and his on-screen love interest Zooey Deschanel, and performed the famous scene where her father sings Christmas songs while she takes a shower.

Ferrell has talked about parenting for years, both joking and sharing more down-to-earth advice. In 2017, he told PEOPLE, “There’s always so much noise in the house. Whether they’re having fun or losing their mind, they’re always screaming at the top of their lungs.”

In July 2023, Ferrell’s entire family cheered him on at the London premiere of his movie Barbie. Magnus, Matthias, and Axel wore suits for their special day. The family of five also made a cameo appearance in the Jonas Brothers’ holiday film, A Very Jonas Christmas.

Here’s everything you need to know about Will Ferrell’s three sons, Magnus, Matthias, and Axel.

Magnus Pauline Ferrer, 21 years old

Ferrell and Pauline welcomed their first son, Magnus, on March 7, 2004. Years after his birth, the Saturday Night Live alum explained the meaning of his oldest son’s name and why the nickname raised some eyebrows.

“My wife was born in Sweden and really liked the idea of ​​a Scandinavian name. I got a lot of flak saying, ‘What kind of ego would you have to give your child a great name?'” Absolutely not, he shared.

Like his famous father, Magnus is also quite the jokester. “He’s a very subtly funny person,” Ferrell said of his eldest son in a 2018 interview with Parade magazine. The comedian went on to recall a funny stunt Magnus pulled off on school photo day. “Last year, I borrowed another child’s glasses to take a photo for his yearbook. He doesn’t have glasses on. Here he is, looking serious with glasses on,” said the proud father.

Of course, Ferrell couldn’t help but admire Magnus’ sense of humor. “I’m like, ‘Magnus, that’s so subversive and funny. It’s totally my sense of humor,'” Ferrell continued. “He was like, ‘Am I in trouble?'” Like, “No, we have to do it every year!” wonderful! ”

Magnus’s hobby is music, especially playing the keyboard. This budding musician formed a band with two friends and sometimes his father. In December 2022, the band played its first show in San Diego, where Ferrell took to the stage to play cowbell. It was reminiscent of his iconic Saturday Night Live sketch from more than 20 years ago.

When Ferrell’s oldest son attended his alma mater, the University of Southern California, Ferrell made headlines by DJing at a Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity tailgate during Trojan Family Weekend.

In June 2024, Magnus posted a video on TikTok “appreciating what my dad has done,” sharing a photo from prom and revealing the embarrassing thing Ferrell did that night.

In the photo, Ferrell is dressed in medieval costume and standing next to Magnus, who is wearing a checkered suit. “Dressed up like a medieval lord to embarrass me at prom 10000/10,” he wrote in the video.

Magnus spoke to PEOPLE in May 2025 about living with his father during his recent leave of absence from college to pursue music. Although he admitted that it was “difficult” to have “personal space”, he said he was enjoying life at home more than he expected.

“I love my family so much. It’s such a shame. I love spending time with my family, but I think that’s part of it. I get to live at home. I get to eat home-cooked meals,” he shared. “But I also have to do what you have to do when you live in a house, which means you have to help run the house. That’s the kind of thing you have to do.”

Matthias Pauline Ferrell, 19 years old

The couple gave birth to their second child, son Mathias, on December 30, 2006. During an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 2007, Ferrell admitted that he did not know the English translation of his son’s Swedish nickname.

“Matthias means ‘fire-eater,'” he joked. “No, I don’t know what it means. It’s a very popular name in Sweden.” The name Matthias actually means “gift of God.”

During a Q&A with his “House” co-star Amy Poehler on CBS This Morning, Ferrell revealed that his children seem to have inherited his sense of humor. “They all have a little sparkle in their eyes,” he said. But when it comes to his own comedy, Matthias and his brother can be a tough audience.

“People often tell me, ‘Let’s stop talking and get back to the story. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but you’re distracting from the story,'” Ferrell told Poehler about how children react to her impressions.

At Parade in 2018, Ferrell said Mathias started working on old SNL sketches when he was in sixth grade. “It’s fun when they discover it,” he told the magazine.

In addition to comedy, Matthias is also passionate about sports. In 2015, Ferrell revealed to PEOPLE that he and Pauline had signed up for Mathias’ soccer team.

“My wife and I coach an 8-year-old kids’ team together,” he said at the time, adding, “So stay tuned, AYSO Region 76. The Chargers are coming!”

Axel Pauline Ferrell, 16 years old

Ferrell and Pauline’s youngest child, son Axel, was born on January 23, 2010 in Los Angeles.

As Ferrell has said many times, one of his greatest joys is embarrassing children. This is especially true when children misbehave. According to 8Days, the actor told BANG Showbiz in 2017, “If they say bad things, I’ll show up to dinner in just my pants and warn them.”

“I can only imagine, but sometimes I think of[parenting boys]like running a prison,” he joked, adding that he often ends up “shuffling orders” to his sons. “There’s too much confusion to take the time to explain clearly.”

Axel and his brothers are very interested in Halloween and even choose their father’s Halloween costume every year.

“We have a tradition of them picking out my Halloween costume, whatever it is,” Ferrell said. “A few years ago, I was doing the poop emoji.”