How Dennis Quaid Prepared to Play His 'Favorite President' Ronald Reagan (2024)

Published: May 16, 2024

How Dennis Quaid Prepared to Play His ‘Favorite President’ Ronald Reagan

By Movieguide® Contributor

Dennis Quaid wanted to properly honor one of his favorite presidents, and he explained how he prepared for his role as Ronald Reagan in a biopic releasing this summer.

“It was a very daunting role for me…I voted for him,” Quaid told Crosswalk Headlines. “But I didn’t want it to just be a love letter, either. You always want to try to get to who he was. It was a very interesting journey in playing that role. In a way, the great communicator was kind of unknowable, to even the people who knew him, who were in his world. I think Nancy was the only person who really knew him. There was a very private side to him.”

Quaid was given roughly a year to prepare after being offered the role. He spent that time going deep into the history of Reagan’s life, trying to get a feeling for the qualities that were not always seen by the public. Quaid also spent this period getting to know Reagan’s childhood and his time in Hollywood along with his political career.

“I said ‘yes’ [to the movie] because he was my favorite president,” he said. “[But] I didn’t want to do an impersonation of him. So, I had about a year to prepare for that. In my mind, I already knew Reagan really well. I’m a history buff as well.”

“Reagan won the Cold War…without firing a shot,” Quaid added. “And he was so much about what is good about America…I think it’s a good time for it to come out.”

The biopic will focus on Reagan’s efforts to fight tyranny worldwide. Rather than focusing on the politics of his life, the movie will be a pro-American movie, promoting the values that make our nation so great.

“From dusty small-town roots, to the glitter of Hollywood, and then on to commanding the world stage,REAGANis a cinematic journey of overcoming the odds. Told through the voice of Viktor Petrovich, a former KGB agent whose life becomes inextricably linked with Ronald Reagan’s when Reagan first caught the Soviets’ attention as an actor in Hollywood, this film offers a perspective as unique as it is captivating,” a synopsis reads.

“The way the film is set up, it’s not Democrats-are-good, Republicans-are-bad or vice versa,” producer Mark Joseph explained. “It’s more about: There was totalitarianism in the world and Americans together helped to end that. My hope is that it’s a movie that doesn’t divide, but unifies.”

REAGAN is set to hit theaters on August 30.

Movieguide® previously reported:

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE actor Dennis Quaid will portray Ronald Reagan in the upcoming biopic, REAGAN. However, Quaid said he was initially confused why they asked him to play the 40th U.S. president.

“I didn’t understand why they were offering me Ronald Reagan because I just didn’t see it,” QuaidtoldEntertainment Weekly. “I admired him so much, and so I had a chill of fear go down my spine when I was offered it. That’s usually kind of a sign that maybe I should do it, because it’s out of my comfort zone.”

SOUL SURFER’s Sean McNamara will direct with NO SAFE SPACE’s Mark Joseph producing. Quaid also starred in the faith-filled and Movieguide® Award-Winning SOUL SURFER.

REAGAN is adapted from conservative author Paul Kengor’s book “The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism” and will span Reagan’s life “from his childhood to his time in the oval office.