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Will Ferrell’s Netflix documentaryWill & Harperalmost got scrapped before it even began. The acclaimed documentary movie finds the comedian and his long time friend Harper Steele going on a road trip, exploring deep Americana in its entirety.
While it is a heartwarming premise for a story, what makes it even more heart-touching is that this is Steele’s first time exploring her beloved country as a trans woman. Steele came out in 2021 to her closest family and friends via an email at 61 years of age.
While she feels some wistfulness for spending so much of her life hiding, she doesn’t want it to hold back anymore. This is when Ferrell suggested the road trip to her, and proposed the idea of a documentary. However, there were complications at the start that almost stopped it from ever happening.
Will Ferrell’s acclaimed documentary movieWill & Harperalmost didn’t happen
The longtime friends first met on the set ofSaturday Night Liveway back in 1995 when they got hired in the same week. What has made the writer and comedian duo’s friendship last so long are their similar temperaments, as perUSA Today. They went on to collaborate on more projects after theirSNLdays until the pandemic put a stop to it.
After Harper Steele came out in 2021,Will Ferrellsuggested a 16-day road trip through the heart of America, keeping her love for dingy bars, and diners in mind. The well-documented journey shows the duo traipsing through the country with frequent visits to basketball games and diners, all while bopping to alt rock music.
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However, when Ferrell suggested the idea of documenting their journey, Steele was apprehensive about it. The reason behind that, as Steele stated in the interview, was because she doesn’t“like being on camera for any reason”.So she took some time to think about it. In the end, she changed her mind on the subject for a very good reason.
In terms of politics and the trans landscape in America and all the (anti-trans) bills being passed. I thought there was some value there. Also, whenever I team up with Will, we do strange projects. This one felt uncomfortable and weird.
Will Ferrell, too, had his doubts about it initially. He had to stop and think about whether he was asking questions to Steele about her newfound freedom in a respectful manner. Moreover, there was another fear that hounded him as they cruised through some of the more conservative parts of the country.
Are we going to have a crazy confrontation (with someone) out there? And when people inevitably ask what we’re filming, will I be able to stand up for my friend and articulate what’s going on? All those things were on my mind.
Thankfully for the pair, they emerged victorious on all fronts even when they were faced with forms of public bigotry in places like Indianapolis and Texas.
Will Ferrell and Harper Steele hope that the documentary movie will help the queer community in the States
WhileWill & Harperdepicts a heartwarming road trip journey of two friends zooming from New York to Los Angeles, it also makes people think. It forces people to confront the bigotry a trans person can face in the very country they grew up in and made a name for themselves.
Although Harper Steele claimed that their interaction with the general public was welcoming, at the time she attributed it to Will Ferrell’s celebrity status as she stated in theUSA Todayinterview.
I can’t say if I am totally welcomed there, because I went in there with Will Ferrell. You’re welcome wherever you go with Will Ferrell, so that’s not entirely a real trans experience.
According to her, she wanted to experience the things she loves so deeply without the fear of being judged, or confronting hatred at every turn. As a result, after that, she has gone traveling to those parts again, on her own. What she found through that experience was that most people portray kindness as a first response.
I have found it easier. Part of that’s on me, and the confidence I bring going into those places now.
Regardless, the documentary helped her in many ways, and she hopes that it would also help other people who confront the same demons. Will Ferrell, too, shares similar views on the matter, as he stated in the interview.
We’re just trying to lend whatever currency we have to supporting voices that maybe don’t get as much support as they should. That’s kind of the battle cry, and it’s so fun when these things actually resonate.
Thankfully for them both, the public has received the message extremely well. While the movie has gained a whopping 99%Rotten Tomatoesrating, many more have reached out to the comedian with appreciative words.
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Moreover, the film has already earned nominations in the Best Documentary category in theBAFTA Awardsand the Best Edited Documentary category in the Eddie Awards. According to many, chances of it getting an Oscar nod aren’t far-fetched as well.
Will & Harperis streaming on Netflix.
Anushree Banerjee
Articles Published :595
Anushree Banerjee is an Anime Writer at FandomWire with over 550 published articles. She has a post-grad in English and years of experience working with some of the biggest companies on the pop culture, and anime scene, such as, Sportskeeda, Pinkvilla, and MovieWeb. Staying on top of everything anime consumes her days, while bingeing on everything horror, and thriller keeps her up at night. Be it superhero flicks from Marvel and DC, or Shonen, and Seinen, like Bleach, The Apothecary Diaries, and Attack on Titan, she can probably state facts about them faster than she can recite her home address.
