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Half-an-hour into the new Netflix documentary “Will & Harper,” Hollywood actor and comedian Will Ferrell and his close friend Harper Steele find themselves in Indianapolis, having what they’ve since described as an “uncomfortable” encounter with Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb.
The film documents a cross-country trip the two embarked on in 2023 and centers on Steele’s transition and identity as a trans woman. Steele, a former “Saturday Night Live” writer, came out during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two-hour documentary — which released on Netflix last week — follows the decades-old friends as they reacquaint with one another following Steele’s transition, setting the stage for Steele to come into her own while meeting people from coast to coast.
In an early scene in the film, Steele and Ferrell meet and take photos with Holcomb, a Republican, at an Indiana Pacers basketball game. Afterward, the two discuss Holcomb’s views on transgender issues, as well as his 2023 approval of legislation that outlawed gender-affirming care for minors.
As they debrief the encounter, the duo talk about how they wish they had specifically asked the governor about the issue in the moment.
Ferrell and Steele additionally elaborated on the scene last week during an interview on “Late Night With Seth Meyers.”
The two recalled meeting Holcomb, who they said was eager for a photo opportunity with Ferrell while at the basketball game.
“I will say that, when you walk into a bar or basketball game with Will Ferrell, people tend to want to be kind,” Steele told Meyers. “We have an uncomfortable moment with the governor of Indiana, who is not very kind of trans people, but he needed to take a picture with Will so bad that he dropped all of his principles. And that, to me, is what Will does for me.”
Steele continued that it’s “politicians that are polarizing us,” but said her experience while filming the documentary showed her that “the resting place for people is generally kindness. I think we found that across the country.”
Holcomb did not respond to the Indiana Capital Chronicle’s request for comment about the documentary or his encounter with Ferrell and Steele.
The 2023 bill in question made law a controversial medical care ban for transgender minors, which Holcomb approved over the protests of families, medical professionals and transgender children.
A court challenge previously put the law on hold, but a federal judge’s February ruling reinstated the ban while litigation continues.
In 2022, Holcomb vetoed a different measure that would have barred transgender female athletes from competing with their peers, saying the Indiana High School Athletic Association already had a policy for transgender athletes. Within weeks, the General Assembly returned for a technical corrections day and voted to overturn his veto with a simple majority.
Had Holcomb decided to veto the gender-affirming care bill, it’s likely that lawmakers would have ultimately overturned his veto again.
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