Ted 2 Snatched Morgan Freeman

With a movie like “Ted 2,” there are two types of casting, beyond confirmation of original stars returning: The kind we want to hear about and the kind we probably don’t, and hopefully won’t.

The latter applies to the anticipated celebrity cameos whose arrivals play out best when you don’t know they’re coming. Morgan Freeman would be a prime candidate for such a random appearance. However, news that he’s boarding the cast of Seth MacFarlane’s anticipated “Ted” follow-up indicates that his arrival isn’t one of the reported cameos.

Variety has reported confirmation today that Morgan Freeman has signed on to play “an iconic civil rights lawyer who comes into the picture when Ted needs to resolve some legal issues.” Are Ted’s civil liberties in jeopardy in some way? Sounds like Freeman’s character will be involved in sorting that out one way or the other.

Variety goes on to note that MacFarlane showed interest in bringing Morgan Freeman into the sequel from the start, as he was looking for a “high-profile actor” for a fun role.

Freeman certainly is high-profile, and he’s proven time and again that he can handle fun as well as he can handle serious roles.

“Ted” comes from Seth MacFarlane and stars Mark Wahlberg as John, a man who’s still best friends with his childhood pal Ted, who happens to be a talking, living stuffed bear.

As one might expect from a comedy by and starring Seth MacFarlane, the tone of the first film was comical, focusing on the ridiculous shenanigans of a grown stuffed bear who’s still as devoted to John in adulthood as he was when they were kids. We’ll have to wait and see how that relationship has developed since then in the sequel.

In “Ted 2,” Morgan Freeman joins returning stars Mark Wahlberg, Jessica Barth and Patrick Warburton, along with Ted newcomer Amanda Seyfried, who worked with Seth MacFarlane on “A Million Ways To Die In The West.” And, of course, Seth MacFarlane is directing, co-writing and voice-starring as the titular stuffed bear, Ted.