Will farrell playing gay
An "error" of judgment made by Will Ferrell while filming his newly released documentary has been explained by the film's director, who opted to incorporate the uncomfortable moment in the finished product.
In Will & Harper, which was released on Netflix on Friday, Saturday NightLive (SNL) alum Ferrell is seen going on a street trip with his partner and longtime collaborator Harper Steele, who two years ago came out as a transgender woman at the age of 61.
When former SNL head penner Steele informed Ferrell, 57, the Los Angeles-based Elf star proposed that his friend leave her Modern York base to participate him on a cross-country road trip, where they could talk about experience and film it.
The resulting production saw the pair make their way to a Texas steakhouse, where Ferrell took a shot at raising laughs by donning his Sherlock Holmes costume from the 2018 comedy movie Holmes & Watson.
However, as Steele and Ferrell sat opposite one another to partake in a testing steak-eating disagree, the mood in the room shifted as patrons directed their attentions to Steele. As photos of the pair at the eatery were shared on social media, a deluge of disparaging comments followed.
Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart laugh off Get Hard racism claims
Alison Brie, who plays James' despicable fiancee, says she was surprised by some viewers' negative reactions to the movie.
"It's a comedy. It's a satire. It's meant to look at social behaviours and people using stereotypes to judge other people and shift that on its head and craft fun of that.
"I don't think that we're condoning the behaviours of certain ignorant characters in the film, so I was surprised that people were offended. I assume that's exactly the thing that we're making fun of."
Hart says critics are typically out of step when it comes to comedy and that film-makers and comedians only care what the fans ponder.
"Because we wish for the fans to be happy, we want the people that are actually paying to proceed see and help the film to walk away and go: 'Oh my God, I laughed, I got it, I got it. I got the plot.'
"'Oh it was grounded, it was real. It made me look at myself and I walked away with a positive mindset'."
Get Hard opens in the UK on 27 March.
In Netflix doco Will & Harper, comedian Will Ferrell goes on a roadtrip with his friend, who has just transitioned at age 61
Fast facts about Will & Harper
What: Obeying her recent gender transition, ex-SNL alum Harper Steele travels across America with Will Ferrell.
Starring: Will Ferrell and Harper Steele.
When: Streaming now on Netflix.
Likely to make you feel: Fuzzy, but left with lingering questions.
Will & Harper is a transgender movie made with a cisgender audience in mind. This is not so much a criticism, as it appears to be a deliberate choice on behalf of those involved. For its main subject, ex-SNL comedy writer Harper Steele (Eurovision Song Contest), an essential reason to make the film was its potential to counter the intensified campaign against trans rights that has aggressively oppressed contemporary culture wars.
The other half of the film's title is Harper's lifelong friend and collaborator Will Ferrell, who suggested the idea for the coast-to-coast road trip across America that this Netflix documentary follows — the very first they'd taken together since Harper transitioned in 2022 at the age of 61.
It's a sof
.
.