There seems to be some kind of curse with Jim Carrey . . . there's been too many movies where they wanted Jim Carrey but settled for Will Ferrell instead, and those movie tanked and bombed. Three specific examples come to mind:
ELF: Granted, I actually like this movie . . . I know everybody at MC hates this movie, but I don't understand why. But nevertheless, they originally wanted Jim Carrey for Buddy the Elf - I'm not sure why they couldn't get him, but they got Will Ferrell instead, and honestly, this is only Will Ferrell movie I like. He plays against type. He actually plays a sympathetic character who, despite being quirky and unbalances, has depth and layers that none of his other characters even possess.
BEWITCHED: This movie was bad. This movie was so bad. And once again, they originally wanted Jim Carrey for the actor playing Darrin in the remake since he kind of resembles Dick York to the extent of having a really expressive face, and maybe, just maybe, Jim Carrey could have saved this movie . . . or not, I'm not sure. The premise was interesting, but the execution was clumsy, and the whole movie was just an embarrassment to the original show. And, of course, Will Ferrell is just . . . Will Ferrell.
LAND OF THE LOST: Once again, Sid & Marty Krofft wanted Jim Carrey for Rick Marshall, but couldn't get him, and they got Will Ferrell instead . . . and once again, Will Ferrell is just Will Ferrell. But even the Kroffts are embarrassed by this movie for making the mistake of trying to make the movie like other remakes: almost parodies/spoofs of the original series. I couldn't make it past ten minutes of this movie, and from what I understand, the Kroffts are going to avoid going in that direction with any future movies of theirs, and stay truer to their source materials. But nevertheless, again, Will Ferrell is part of the reason this movie sucks.