Whatever Happened To Farkus From A Christmas Story?
More than 40 years after its release, there's no question that Bob Clark's "A Christmas Story" remains one of the most popular and beloved holiday classics of all time. Part of the film's enduring appeal is its iconic cast of oddball characters, with a few of the most memorable ones being unruly mall Santa (Jeff Gillen) who angrily boots children down a slide, and the unfortunately-named schoolyard bully Scut Farkus (Zack Ward).
Farkus in particular serves as the primary antagonist of the film, terrorizing young Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) and his friends for the majority of the film. According to the nine-year-old Ralphie, Farkus was the most rotten kid in the entire neighborhood, so evil that he legitimately had yellow eyes. Farkus is essentially the amalgamation of every childhood bully who's ever lived, which makes it all the more satisfying when Ralphie finally snaps and fights back near the end of the film.
Ralphie tackles Farkus and beats him into the dirt, unleashing a vulgar cloud of curse words as he whoops the bully with half the school looking on. Because Scut Farkus is such a memorable villain (and a crucial part of this beloved holiday classic), some fans have probably wondered what happened to Zack Ward after this breakout performance. As it happens, Ward has kept himself extremely busy, and has appeared in countless films and television shows long after his appearance in "A Christmas Story."
His breakout role caused some problems in his personal life
Zack Ward's nefarious performance as Scut Farkus served as an important milestone in his young acting career. Not only was Farkus his breakthrough role in the world of Hollywood, but the character is still one of Ward's most well-known roles to date, even though he has been acting for over 40 years.
Although this role might have jumpstarted Ward's entire career, it's worth noting that his performance had a distinctly negative effect on his personal life. During a 2022 interview with Insider, Ward explained that his part as Scut Farkus sometimes caused strangers to antagonize him in public. "They'd look at me like I kicked their dog," Ward said. "Cause they'd be like 'I know that guy's a bad guy. Where do I know him from?'" Ward went on to say that these angry strangers would become even more aggressive if alcohol was involved, and that he's had a few people try to pick fights with him while out at the bar.
Luckily, Ward says that the public reception to Scut Farkus has become much more nuanced in recent years and that the fans he meets now are much more appreciative of his performance. "In the last 20 years, it's turned into a wonderful experience where people are really sweet and kind. Before that, they weren't quite sure where they knew me from," Ward said.
He enjoyed steady work throughout the '80s and '90s
While it must have been disheartening to deal with the more aggressive fans off the back of "A Christmas Story," it's clear that none of these interactions slowed down Zack Ward's career. Indeed, Ward followed up his breakthrough performance by building up a prolific acting resume throughout the '80s and '90s, starring in a slew of high-profile films and television series.
Some of Ward's most notable roles during this time include his smaller parts in "Friday the 13th: The Series," and "NYPD Blue," as well as his role as Jerry 'Mad Dog' Sullivan in "Walker, Texas Ranger." During this stretch, Ward also appeared in the Matt LeBlanc-led sports comedy "Ed" (a movie about a baseball-playing chimpanzee) as well as the adventure comedy "Wild America."
While none of these characters were as widely regarded as Scut Farkus, the dozens of minor roles that Ward scooped up during this time were highly indicative of his career to come. If nothing else, one can say that Ward has stayed extremely busy ever since he first burst onto the scene.
Ward delivered a historically significant performance in Almost Famous
Widely regarded as the magnum opus of filmmaker Cameron Crowe, "Almost Famous" is a comedy-drama film that centers around a teenage journalist named William Miller (Patrick Fugit), who finds himself embroiled in the chaos of the '70s rock scene while writing for Rolling Stone.
Because "Almost Famous" is semi-autobiographical (being loosely based on Crowe's experience as a teenage rock journalist), the film features several real-life journalists and historical figures. These include the music journalist Lester Bangs (Philip Seymour Hoffman), well-known socialite and philanthropist Penny Lane (Kate Hudson), and the "Legendary Red Dog," played by Zack Ward. The real "Legendary Red Dog" was a longtime roadie for the Allman Brothers Band, whose real name was Joseph L. Campbell.
Campbell was a well-known figure in the world of '70s Rock and Roll, and he eventually compiled all of his stories from that time into a book called "The Legendary Red Dog: A Book of Tails." Ward certainly did more than enough to bring this legendary roadie to life on the big screen, and many fans of the movie will undoubtedly remember his iconic and absurd line, "You can taste the color with your mind, brother."
He played the character of Dave Scoville on Titus
The same year that Zack Ward made his memorable cameo appearance in "Always Famous," he secured what would go on to be perhaps the second most prominent role of his entire career — that of Dave Scoville in Fox's "Titus."
"Titus" was a dark comedy series that ran for three seasons between 2000 and 2002. It centered around the titular comedian Christopher Titus, and was based on his one-man show "Norman Rockwell is Bleeding." Because the show centers around a fictionalized version of Titus' real-life family, it should come as no surprise that one of the show's central characters is Titus' half-brother, Dave, played by Zack Ward. Dave is a habitual slacker who still lives with his father, Ken (Stacy Keach), and who often finds himself on the wrong side of the law.
In one memorable episode, Ken decides to have Dave arrested after he attempts to steal his VCR. As a result, Christopher decides to help Dave finally move out of their father's house, only for a spiteful Ken to report Christopher as an accomplice to the aforementioned theft. The actor would go on to appear in 54 episodes of "Titus," right up until its cancellation in 2002.
Ward's next major role came in the 2004 video game movie Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Following the cancellation of "Titus," Zack Ward scored yet another major role in the 2004 video game film "Resident Evil: Apocalypse" –- a sequel to 2002's "Resident Evil" and based on the Capcom video game series of the same name.
"Apocalypse" picks up directly where the first film left off, with Alice (Milla Jovovich) barely escaping the underground facility known as the "Hive," and finding herself in the zombie-infested Raccoon City. There, she is forced to contend with several major villains from the original video game series, including the brutal Umbrella Corp operative Nicholai Ginovaef (Zack Ward). Ginovaef first appeared in the video game "Resident Evil 3: Nemesis," where he enters Racoon City with a mission to eradicate the zombie "T-Virus." He would go on to serve as a major antagonist in games like "Resident Evil: Outbreak" and "Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City."
Unlike his video game counterpart, Ward's version of Ginovaef has a much shorter-lived reign of terror and is abandoned by the Umbrella Corporation and left to die in Racoon City. Although this version of Ginovaef may not have made the impact of his video game counterpart, he remains one of Ward's most memorable roles to date.
He appeared in a slew of prolific television series throughout the 2000s
From 2004 to 2005, Zack Ward somehow outdid the impressive run of television shows and feature films that he had accomplished during the '80s and '90s, scoring minor roles in some of the most influential television shows of the mid-2000s.
One such role came on the critically acclaimed HBO Western "Deadwood," wherein Ward played the "Hotel Desk Clerk" in the Season 1 episode "No Other Sons or Daughters," and the Season 2 episode "Childish Things." Ward also appeared in a 2005 episode of "NCIS," playing Virginia Policeman Billy Krieg in the Season 2 episode "Hometown Hero."
2005 also saw what is perhaps Ward's most impressive guest appearance of this era, which came in the science fiction drama series "Lost." Ward played the character of Marc Silverman, who was the longtime best friend of lead survivor Jack Shepard (Matthew Fox) and appeared in a flashback to Jack's wedding during the episode "Do No Harm." In the episode, Marc delivers Jack's best man speech and recounts the story of how Jack met his ex-wife Sarah Wagner (Julie Bowen) after a car crash. Not only does Ward's cameo provide some essential backstory for Jack, but it also clarifies an important conflict between Jack and fellow survivor Shannon Rutherford (Maggie Grace) — since Shannon's father died in the aforementioned car crash.
Ward appeared in 2007's Transformers
Though 2006 was a relatively quiet year for Zack Ward (at least compared to the usual pace of his work), the actor once again found himself in one of the biggest projects of the year in 2007, taking on the role of Patrick Donnelly in Michael Bay's "Transformers."
Based on the shapeshifting Hasbro toys of the same name, "Transformers" centers around a young man named Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf), who finds himself embroiled in the centuries-old battle between Autobots and Decepticons. Sam quickly allies himself with the Autobots (accidentally purchasing Mark Ryan's "Bumblebee" while the alien was disguised as a Chevrolet Camaro), and eventually joins forces with a team of U.S. Army Rangers led by Captain William Lennox (Josh Duhamel). One member of Lennox's squad is the bespectacled Patrick Donnelly, played by Ward.
Donnelly's most memorable moment comes during the squad's fight with the Decepticon Scorponok, a monstrous mechanical scorpion who ambushes Lennox and friends in the desert of Qatar. Donnelly is first to be taken down by this terrifying alien invader, as Scorponok pops up from the sand and impales the soldier with its metal stinger — putting an end to Zack Ward's brief appearance in this iconic blockbuster franchise.
He scored leading roles in two more video game adaptations after Resident Evil
In addition to his appearance in one of the biggest action films of the decade, 2007 also saw Zack Ward starring in the video game movies "Postal" and "BloodRayne II: Deliverance." Where Ward's prior role in "Resident Evil: Apocalypse" was merely that of a supporting antagonist, this time the actor managed to secure leading roles in both films.
"BloodRayne II: Deliverance" is a Western horror film that serves as a sequel to 2005's "BloodRayne," which was itself based on the video game series of the same name. The film centers around the titular vampire-human hybrid Rayne (Natissia Malthe) and her attempts to kill an undead version of legendary outlaw Billy the Kid (Ward). "Postal" is based on the controversial and gratuitously violent video games "Postal" and "Postal 2," and tells the story of the bloodthirsty "Postal Dude" (Ward) and his chaotic rampage across the United States. Featuring real-life figures like cult leader Dave Koresh (Dave Foley) and Osama Bin Laden (Larry Thomas), the film has since been heralded by Rotten Tomatoes as "An attempt at political satire that lacks any wit or relevance."
Both of these films were universally panned by critics and audiences alike, with "Postal" bombing dramatically at the box office and earning just $146,741 on an estimated budget of $15 million. Fortunately, the abysmal response to these two films seemed to have very little effect on Zack Ward's career, as he would continue to find steady work through the next decade.
In 2011, Ward became embroiled in a legal battle with Warner Bros.
Though Zack Ward would continue to act frequently through the early 2010s — starring in shows like "Hawaii Five-0," "The Mentalist," and "CSI: Miami" — in 2011 the actor began an extensive legal battle with Warner Bros.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Ward sued Warner Bros. for misappropriating his likeness on figurines of Scut Farkus from "A Christmas Story," claiming that he had never once permitted the company to use his appearance on said figures. The crux of this suit is the claim that Ward was the sole member of the cast who never signed away the rights to his character's likeness, due to a small difference in Ward's ACTRA Agreement. The suit claimed that Ward was not only seeking damages for the misappropriation of his likeness but that he wished for all figurines bearing his image to be destroyed.
This lawsuit was dropped in 2012 after Warner Bros. countered that the figurines in question bore only a "generic face" that was used on multiple different figures. Despite this, Ward filed another suit against Warner Bros. later that same year — this time about a "Christmas Story" board game that once again used his likeness. The second suit was settled for an undisclosed amount.
Throughout the 2010s, Ward began to take on more work behind the camera
Although Zack Ward's first credit as a producer dates back to the 2008 documentary "The Untold Christmas Story," it wasn't until 2011 that the longtime actor really began his work as a producer and director.
2011 saw Ward serve as an associate producer on the straight-to-DVD film "Monster Mutt" and the television horror film "End of the Road." In 2012, Ward directed and executive produced the short film "Protocol X," in which a college student volunteers for an experimental drug test with horrifying results. In 2015, Ward's filmmaking endeavors took another step forward when he formed the production company Grit Film Works alongside award-winning Indie director James Cullen Bressack.
Working for Grit Film Works, Ward made his feature directorial debut with the 2016 microbudget horror flick "Restoration," and served as a producer for Bressack's 2017 film "Bethany." Ward's work as a producer and director has continued right up into present day, and he is listed as the director behind the upcoming films "Fallen Cards" and "Patsy Lee & The Keepers of the 5 Kingdoms."
In 2014, Ward became the CEO of Global Sports Finance Exchange
Surprisingly, 2014 saw Zack Ward beef up his already impressive resume by taking on a position in the world of finance. Specifically, Ward took on the position of Chief Executive Officer for the Global Sports Finance Exchange, which allows investors to trade shares of professional sports teams as though they were stocks.
The GSFE was co-founded by Zack Ward and former NHL player Bernie Nicholls, and essentially operates as a futures market where you can invest in teams you think will increase in value over time. The value of a team on the GSFE is determined by their win-loss record in the short term, while their long-term prospects and stock price are dictated by everything from management changes to in-season trades. In 2019, Sports Betting Dime reported that the GSFE had a market capitalization of over $1.57 Billion, and had paid out more than $25 million to investors.
The GSFE is a subsidiary of the sports investing site All Sports Market, which lists the total market capitalization of ASM to be more than $47 billion at present. As such, it's safe to say that Ward's financial career is rolling along with just as much success as his acting one.
He reprised his role as Scut Farkus in A Christmas Story Christmas
As the 2010s went on, Zack Ward once again found himself in some of the hottest television shows out there, taking on minor roles in hit shows like "Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and "American Horror Story: Cult."
With Ward continuing to find steady work so many years after his breakout role as Scut Farkus, it was perhaps fitting that 2022 saw his career come full circle with the release of "A Christmas Story Christmas." A sequel to the original "A Christmas Story," the film takes place 33 years after its predecessor and follows an adult Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) as he returns to his hometown following the death of his father. The film features a slew of actors from the original movie, including Ian Patrella (who played Ralphie's brother, Randy Parker) and of course, Zack Ward, who reprises his role as a grown-up Scut Farkus.
The adult Farkus turns out to be a Police Officer for Hohman, Indiana, and at one point he catches Ralphie while the latter tries to steal a tree ornament from a local bar. While Ralphie initially believes that Farkus is going to murder him (indeed, Farkus turns off his radio and drives right past the police station), he brings Ralphie straight home. Farkus admits that Ralphie's beating from the first film helped him turn his life around, and thus the story of the former childhood bully comes to a surprisingly heartfelt end.