In the fall of 1980, Dennis Quaid was 26 years old when he returned from voting and was greeted by his curious roommate. When asked who he had voted for, Quaid responded with “Ronald Reagan,” prompting his roommate to jokingly declare, “That’s it, you’re kicked out of the hippies.“ Quaid humorously recalls, “I turned in my hippie card right there.”
Now, at 70, Quaid, who describes himself as “always an independent“ voter, stars as Ronald Reagan in the biopic “Reagan,“ which hits theaters this Friday. The film spans Reagan’s entire life and highlights two of his most defining accomplishments: his enduring marriage to Nancy Reagan and his pivotal role in ending the Cold War through his interactions with Mikhail Gorbachev.
The movie features Penelope Ann Miller as Nancy Reagan, portraying her as a fierce protector of her husband, and Jon Voight as retired KGB agent Viktor Petrovich, who narrates the film as an older man reflecting on his nation’s greatest adversary. Although the film briefly touches on the fierce opposition Reagan faced from liberal circles during his presidency, it is primarily aimed at his supporters. Notably, select attendees at the recent Republican National Convention were given an early film screening.
Quaid explains his approach to portraying the iconic president: “First of all, I didn’t want to just do some kind of impersonation of him, since he’s one of the most recognizable people in the world. And really, it was a feeling of being unworthy. I also thought my feelings for him would cloud how I’d play him. I wanted to get past that public persona to the human being.”
Quaid conducted extensive research to prepare for the role, including conversations with people who knew Reagan and watching countless videos. “I had some luck with the hair, which I basically already had, plus a little dye,“ he says. Despite Reagan’s background in acting and renowned theatrical skills—the film re-creates his famous 1984 debate quip about not exploiting challenger Walter Mondale’s “youth and inexperience”—Quaid found Reagan somewhat enigmatic.
“Everyone I talked to said there was something impenetrable about him, something that I’m guessing even Nancy experienced,“ Quaid says. “There was a wall there, maybe coming from having an alcoholic father, having to hide your deepest emotions, intimacy maybe being an issue.”
Quaid’s turning point came when he was invited to visit Reagan’s famed Rancho del Cielo, often called the Western White House. Located on 688 hilly acres outside Santa Barbara, the ranch gave Quaid insight into Reagan’s character. “It’s not open to the public, but I got to go,“ he says. “You take the 101 Highway north and then exit and do about 5 miles of some of the worst road in America until you get to that gate. And right then I felt I knew who this man was. He was a humble man. You can see it in all the work he did on the ranch himself, in the clothes that still hang in the closet. You can see it in the 1,100-square-foot house, in the two twin beds they zip-tied together to make one bed.”
Reagan offers a cinematic glimpse into the life of one of America’s most revered presidents. Dennis Quaid delivers a performance that seeks to capture the essence of the man behind the public persona.