Will Ferrell wants his documentary ‘Will & Harper’ to counteract ‘hatred’ towards the transgender community

After debuting to warm reception at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and playing at multiple fall film festivals, including TIFF, Will Ferrell and collaborator Harper Steele’s travel documentary “Will & Harper” is finally available to stream on Netflix. The film, in which Ferrell and his friend travel across America trying to understand Steele’s physical and spiritual transition into womanhood, is released at the height of an election season pitting two candidates diametrically opposed on issues related to LGBTQ rights. Despite this, in a recent interview with The Independent, Ferrell explained how this project’s efforts go beyond politics.

“There is hatred outside,” he said. “It’s very real and in some situations very dangerous for transgender people. But I don’t know why trans people would threaten me as a cis man. I don’t know why Harper is threatening me. It’s so weird to me because Harper finally… her. She is finally who she was always meant to be. Whether you can ultimately think about it or not, why should you care if someone is happy? Why are you threatened by this? If the trans community is a threat to you, I think it’s because of a lack of confidence and safety.”

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“Will & Harper” director Josh Greenbaum (“Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” “Strays”) echoes Ferrell’s sentiments, and despite trying to create a “very clean, simple story of two friends,” we also went in knowing that the film will be “perceived as a political film.” In fact, in many ways Greenbaum was counting on it.

“It would be disingenuous not to point out that we were aware of the reach that Will Ferrell has,” Greenbaum said. “The fan base he has crosses all spectrums, but he also has a very traditionally heterosexual, cis-male brother (element). At some level we certainly want to reach that audience. But it was very important to me and Harper that we also represented the queer community.”

For Steele, her plan was perhaps the most selfish, but also the most personal element of the project and the most liberating. She told The Independent: ‘We just wanted to talk about what it’s like for two people who are friends – what it all means to us and to the development of our friendship. I needed him to see the joy I was experiencing. I also wanted to show my friend that I’m still funny. And probably funnier than him.

“Will & Harper” is available to watch on Netflix.

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