Will Ferrell and Harper Steele echo their regrets for transphobic SNL sketch

After their recent documentary Will & Harper, Will Ferrell and Harper Steele say that they regret having Ferrell do drag for a joke in Saturday Night Live, according to an interview with the New York Times.

The documentary features him getting to know his close friend, former SNL head writer Harper Steele, after she came out as a trans woman. Will & Harper features Ferrell learning about trans people through the lens of his friend as they develop a deeper bond.

In the Times interview, Ferrell was asked about an old SNL sketch where he played former Attorney General Janet Reno. A constant joke in the sketch was that he was a man playing a woman and dressing in drag. He stated that he regrets this and “that’s something I wouldn’t choose to do now.”

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Steele echoed this sentiment, saying. “No, I wouldn’t write it again and I don’t think it’s right. I have always thought punching down was wrong. What I have been discovering, like most of us, is that we were punching down sometimes when we didn’t think we were.”

“I understand the laugh is a drag laugh.” She continued. “It’s ‘Hey, look at this guy in a dress, and that’s funny.’ It’s absolutely not funny. It’s absolutely a way that we should be able to live in the world.”

Ferrell also continued expressing his regrets about the sketch, “I’d have to go back and review shows, but I’m sure there’d be a fair amount where you’d lament the choice. I mean, in a way, the cast – you’re kind of given this assignment. So I’m going to blame the writers.”