Will Ferrell embarks on a cross-country road trip with a decades-long friend in his new film, but viewers anticipating a buddy comedy might be surprised and moved by the end result.

Will & Harper, which premiered Monday at the Sundance Film Festival , has been billed as an intimate portrait of friendship, transition, and America. The documentary follows Ferrell as he reconnects with longtime pal Harper Steele, who reintroduced herself as a trans woman in 2022, while traveling from New York to Los Angeles.

Speaking with Variety , Ferrell acknowledged that he had zero knowledge of the trans community when Steele first began living as her true self. The pair met as professional collaborators on Saturday Night Live , which Steele wrote for from 1995 to 2008.

I had met trans people, but I didnt have anyone personally in my life, the Barbie actor said. So this was all new territory for me, which is why I think this film is so exciting for us to kind of put out there in the world. Its a chance [for] all of us in the cis community to be able to ask questions and also just to listen and be there as a friend to discuss this journey.