'Reagan' Premiere Wows as Dennis Quaid Says Film Shows America 'How Great This Country Used to Be,' 'How Great It Still Can Be'

Veteran actor Dennis Quaid told a packed audience attending the Hollywood premiere of the upcoming movie Reagan, at the world famous TCL Chinese Theater on Tuesday night, that the film will show Americans “how great this country used to be” and “how great this country still can be.” Quaid, who’s graced the silver screen for five decades in classic films from Breaking Away and The Right Stuff to The Parent Trap, I Can Only Imagine, and American Underdog, stars as America’s 40th president Ronald Reagan in the biopic that chronicles the life and times of a man whose persistence, charm, American cowboy spirit, and leadership led to the downfall of the Soviet Union and ended the Cold War.

Breitbart News was on the scene, where the movie’s stars Jon Voight, Penelope Ann Miller, Kevin Dillon, and Nick Searcy, among many other, attended the premiere of Reagan. 

From the wardrobes on display in glass cases to the historical campaign photos of Reagan’s run for president, the filmmakers took great measures in offering guests an immersive experience, evoking a nostalgia for an era that has become almost legendary in the hearts and minds of Americans who lived it.

During his speech ahead of the screening, Quaid, who gives a heartfelt performance as the chipper Gipper, expounded on his love for Reagan — whom he called his favorite president.

“It’s really an honor to have played Ronald Reagan and this is my favorite movie now that I have ever made. It was The Right Stuff for 40 years and it was toppled by this,” he said. “If you were born before 1985, I think, you’re going to be able to see how great this country used to be. If you were born after 1985, you’ll be to see how great this country still can be.”

Quaid went on to note that Hollywood actors owe a debt of gratitude to Ronald Reagan for having been instrumental in giving them health insurance while head of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). “The best in the world if you ask me,” Quaid said.

“He was a great man. He was a humble man. He was my favorite president. That’s for sure,” said Quaid of Reagan.

After dedicating the movie to World War II veterans, including one who was in the audience, and “all of the greatest generation,” Quaid concluded his remarks with a message of hope for Americans, imploring them “to give our children a world even better, because that’s what you would want.”

Reagan offers a love letter to the late-president, taking the audience on an epic journey across several decades in history (a big credit goes to production designer Chris Rose for seamlessly achieving this). You see Quaid as Reagan from his days as an anti-Communist activist to his rise as a Hollywood star, his eventual ascension in politics, as governor of California and his road to the White House. The film offers something of a “greatest hits” gallery of many iconic Reagan moments, from his “evil empire” speech to his attempted assassination, and his historic “tear down this wall” declaration in West Germany.

True to Dennis Quaid’s point about past American greatness, the movie also wisely steers clear of partisan cheap shots by portraying former Democrat House Speaker Tip O’Neill (deftly played by Dan Lauria) as a decent man who befriended Reagan despite their political differences, recalling a time when Americans of varying persuasions could agree to disagree.

When the end credits rolled, viewers were left in tears, surely reflecting upon Reagan’s towering legacy. Future audiences will surely have more than a few lumps in their throat when they see it.

Reagan opens nationwide on August 30.

Paul Roland Bois directed the award-winning Christian tech thriller, EXEMPLUM, which has a 100% Rotten Tomatoes critic rating and can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. “Better than Killers of the Flower Moon,” wrote Mark Judge. “You haven’t seen a story like this before,” wrote Christian Toto. A high-quality, ad-free rental can also be streamed on Google Play, Vimeo on Demand, or YouTube Movies. Follow him on X @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.