Here’s one for you: there’s a biopic of President Ronald Reagan in the works for the big screen, says THR.com. The feature film, titled Reagan and sporting a $30 million
production budget, is set for release late next year and will be
based on two best-selling biographies of the 40th U.S. president by
Paul Kengor: The Crusader and God and Ronald Reagan. Mark Joseph, who optioned the books four years ago, is co-producing
with Ralph Winter and Jonas McCord wrote the script.
The film would start with the 1981 assassination attempt and tell RR’s story through flashback. Aside from the almost getting plugged by a Jodie Foster nutbag uber-groupie scenario, that sounds very similar to a recent Oliver Stone biopic about another two-term Republican honcho. Coincidentally, if you’ll recall, Dubya’s portrayer’s pop did a stint as Ronny in a little-heralded 2003 miniseries. But reportedly, this version would have little in common with that depiction.
I remember the Reagan days, although at the time I wasn’t really old enough to be be concerned with the particulars of the economics beyond the fact that the ’80s seemed to be a lot less shitty than the previous decade. Of course that ended up being at the expense of the deficit and the lower class; but hey, omelet and eggs, right? I’d actually be interested in checking this out. Along with his acting early years, there’s a lot to be mined from Reagan’s presidency. From the Air Traffic Controller’s Strike, to the Cold War, Lebanon and Grenada, “Star Wars”, Savings and Loan, War on Drugs to Iran-Contra. The fact that Reagan is the only Republican president of the last half century with which GOP candidates can even mention in a speech (and they love to do it) also says something. And, as Nino Brown put it, you had to rob to get rich in the Reagan Era.
No word on a director nor actors as of yet. Think Josh Brolin would be interested in another go-round in the oval office? Ronny’s middle name did begin with “W” after all…