Beech Grove, Indiana – Over the weekend, Indiana residents experienced fame in the most unexpected place: the parking lot of the Walmart in Beech Grove. Will Ferrell, the real-life Ron Burgundy, was spotted there on Sunday night with a crew.
Michael Earnest claimed to have seen a friend’s Facebook post about the comedian while he was in the neighborhood Kroger on S. Emerson Avenue.
“I drove the short distance over to Walmart. As soon as I pulled in the parking lot, there was him and his crew filming a scene,” Earnest described. “I could tell which one Will was because he was so much taller than everyone else.”
Earnest claims Ferrell’s production team informed him that their stop in Beech Grove was “random” and that they were “filming a road trip style documentary on the comic.”
For Earnest, meeting Ferrell had a unique significance. Earnest revealed to the actor that he frequently watched Will Ferrell movies with his fellow soldiers while he was serving in Iraq.
“He thanked me for sharing that story and said he loved to hear that and also thanked me for my service.”
The “Anchorman” actor was also able to meet Savanah Rivera in person.
“My inner child is healed,” she said in a video shared on Facebook. “I got to see THE ELF. I’m going to the theaters to see that movie when it comes out. I’m wondering what he’ll say about Indy.”
The Indianapolis region is somewhat familiar with the Beech Grove Walmart. Shots had been fired there at least twice in the last two years, and it was the scene of a fight in 2015 that went viral.
