It's very hard to portray someone famous who is well-known to everyone. Some actors have pulled it off brilliantly, however. Jack Nicholson in Hoffa, a biopic about the controversial labor leader, was stunningly accurate in his demeanor. Philip Seymour Hoffman was similarly exceptional when he was Truman Capote, the author of In Cold Blood, in Capote. Jeff Daniels took on the task of playing President Ronald Reagan in The Brink of War, which hits theaters on August 14.
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It's about the summit meeting in Iceland in 1986 between the American president and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. The subject was nuclear disarmament. What was that experience like for the Terms of Endearment actor?
Becoming Reagan Was Hard for Daniels Because He Was So Familiar to the Public
Jeff Daniels, 71, shared with People that it was "a challenge because [Reagan] is so well known, he is visually so well-known. Verbally, his voice, everything about him is already well known. So that's a trickier kind of — 'Where is he? How do I find him?'"
His strategy was that instead of trying to nail every detail of Ronald Reagan's appearance and voice, Daniels wanted to "suggest" him. He explained, "You do enough with the voice and the mannerisms, and suddenly [the audience is] seeing what he's thinking and what he's feeling, which is where the story is."
Furthermore, Daniels clarified, "I felt him. But, you know, it's like anything. As soon as they say cut, it's no longer yours. I felt like I became him more often than not. And so that's all you can hope for as an actor." He added, "You gotta get the work done before you show up. And everybody did."
Many Political Figures of the Time Are Portrayed in the Film
Among them are Nancy Reagan, played by Hope Davis, Raisa Gorbacheva, acted by Branka Katic, and George Shultz, played by J.K. Simmons,
Reagan Died in 2004
Ronald Reagan passed away at 93 in 2004. He had an amazing life and career. After a successful period as an actor, he went into politics. Reagan would eventually rise in stature to become a revered icon of the Republican Party.
