Ferrell was born in Irvine, California, to Betty Kay (née Overman; born 1940), a Teacher who taught at Old Mill School elementary school and Santa Ana College, and Roy Lee Ferrell Jr. (born 1941), a musician with The Righteous Brothers. His parents were both natives of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, and moved to California in 1964. Ferrell's ancestry includes English, German, and Irish. He has a younger brother named Patrick. When he was eight years old, his parents divorced. Ferrell said of the divorce: "I was the type of kid who would say, 'Hey, look at the bright side! We'll have two Christmases'." The divorce was amicable and both parents were committed to their children. The biggest Problem was his father's line of work. As a person in show Business, his paychecks were never steady and he was gone from home months at a time. Growing up in this environment made Ferrell not want to go into show Business, but get a steady job.