450. Reagan, Star Wars, Trump, & Power | Dennis Quaid

This episode discusses Dennis Quaid's portrayal of Ronald Reagan in a new film, exploring Reagan's anti-communism and the broader implications of his presidency on modern politics and Hollywood.

1. Quaid's Approach to Reagan: Quaid discusses the complexity of playing Ronald Reagan, focusing on Reagan's strong anti-communist policies and his influential leadership style.
2. Political Relevance: The episode discusses the relevance of Reagan's policies to current political climates and the cyclical nature of political ideologies.
3. Hollywood's Political Landscape: Quaid and Peterson examine the impact of political attitudes on Hollywood's culture and productions, historically and presently.
4. Personal Insights: Dennis Quaid shares his personal journey and reflections on his own political views and how they have been shaped over time.
5. The Role of Film in Cultural Commentary: The episode explores how films can comment on and influence cultural and political perceptions.

1. Introduction and Background

Peterson introduces Dennis Quaid, who discusses his upcoming film about Ronald Reagan, focusing on Reagan's anti-communism. Jordan Peterson: "Welcome to today's discussion with Dennis Quaid about his portrayal of Ronald Reagan."

2. Deep Dive into Reagan's Anti-Communism

The central theme of Reagan's presidency, his battle against communism, is discussed, emphasizing its depiction in the film. Dennis Quaid: "Reagan's whole life was a fight against communism, which defined his presidency."

3. Hollywood and Politics

The conversation shifts to the relationship between Hollywood and politics, reflecting on past and present influences. Dennis Quaid: "Hollywood has always been a battleground for political ideas."

4. Personal Political Journey

Quaid shares his personal political experiences and voting history, reflecting broader American political changes. Dennis Quaid: "I've voted across the political spectrum, depending on what I felt the country needed at the time."

5. Conclusion and Reflections

The episode concludes with reflections on the implications of Reagan's policies and the ongoing relevance of his presidency. Jordan Peterson: "Reagan's presidency had a lasting impact on American and global politics."

1. Learn from History: Engage with historical perspectives to better understand current political climates.
2. Appreciate Film as a Medium for Political Commentary: Watch films like the one about Reagan to gain insights into historical figures' impacts.
3. Reflect on Personal Beliefs: Consider how your own political beliefs are shaped by historical and cultural influences.
4. Stay Informed: Keep up with both past and present political discussions to stay informed about the implications for today.
5. Engage in Political Discussions: Use discussions to broaden understanding and challenge personal perspectives.

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson sits down in person with legendary actor Dennis Quaid. They discuss his upcoming film in which he portrays the titular Ronald Reagan, what the former president understood about Marxism, how he dealt with the Soviet cold war, how an actor learns to leave the character after each take, the responsibility to portray flaws as well virtues, existing as an Independent in Hollywood, and the state of the industry as well as the country today.
Dennis William Quaid is an American actor and gospel singer. He is known for his starring roles in Breaking Away (1979), The Right Stuff (1983), The Big Easy (1986), Innerspace (1987), Great Balls of Fire! (1989), Dragonheart (1996), The Parent Trap (1998), Frequency (2000), The Rookie (2002), The Day After Tomorrow (2004), In Good Company (2004), Flight of the Phoenix (2004), Yours, Mine & Ours (2005), and Vantage Point (2008). He received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his role in Far from Heaven (2002). Quaid has appeared in over a hundred and twenty feature films, and The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.

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Jordan Peterson
Hello, everybody. I have the privilege today of speaking with actor Dennis Quaid. He flew into Scottsdale to do the show in person. I saw a screening of his new film coming out in August, end of August, Reagan last year, and thought it was a classic american production, very much enjoyed. It speaks of a very significant time in the history of the world, really, the defeat of the communist empire, which is something remarkable and extremely relevant to today, again, when the same sorts of ideas are making their reemergence.

What did we talk about? What are we going to talk about? Well, Dennis's career, the challenge of playing Reagan, the purpose of drama, the. What would you say? It's calling to us to see the world through the eyes of other people so that we can expand the way that we look at things and we can expand what we can understand.

We talk about Hollywood, we talk about the future of the music industry. We talk about political attitudes and how they affect the entertainment world. Join us for all that. So I think it was about a year ago that I was in LA and Mark Joseph showed me an early cut of Reagan. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
It changed from then. Well, I liked it. I'll tell you why I liked it. I liked the fact that the film concentrated on Reagan's activity as an anti communist. Yeah, you bet.

Jordan Peterson
I thought that was wise. All of his life. Yeah, right, right. All of his life. And so I thought that was extremely interesting, and I thought it was a wise choice to concentrate on that specifically because that's the right.

What would you say? That's the central story with him as far as pertains to the world? That is what he, you know, almost single handedly, really. Because if we'd had another president in there, it would have been business as usual. He defeated communism.

Yeah. Won the Cold War. He defeated it in its last iteration. It's making a lovely comeback at the moment. Well, we didn't.

Dennis Quaid
He didn't help them. No, he certainly didn't. No, no, I agree. Yeah. And I thought the film did a very good job of concentrating on what truly was central about his presidency.

Jordan Peterson
And I think that is what was central. And it was daring. And as you said, he had committed his whole life to it. And so that was interesting. I also thought the movie was interesting from a narrative perspective because it kind of harkened, it was a classic Hollywood movie.

Like, it hearkened back to me, for me, to the kinds of movies that were made in the 1950s and the 1960s. Like, it's unabashedly pro american, but not in a way that hits you over the head. But it's also. It doesn't have that kind of cynical bitterness that's characteristic of much of the productions of popular culture, really, since the 1970s. And so that was nice to see.

And it was pleasant to be carried away by a movie that was. It wasn't like an Oliver movie that Oliver would do, like about Nixon. Right? Yeah, right, right. So how did you get involved in that project, and why were you interested in it?

Dennis Quaid
I took a meeting. I think this was, like, 2017, that I heard these people, they want you to play Reagan. And it was just like, sure, right. Because I didn't think I looked like Reagan or. The only thing we had in common was that we were actors.

And so I went and had a meeting with Mark. And so it was a process, you know, because I. He was my favorite president, I will say already. Yeah. And I'd lived through those times and knew what they were.

He was the first president. I did vote for Jimmy Carter in 76. Regretted it. But in 1980, I voted for Ronald Reagan. My dad was a huge Reagan fan, and I voted for him and went home.

And my roommate at that time from Texas, he said, who'd you vote for? And I said, ronald Reagan. He said, you are kicked out of the hippies. Yeah, definitely. That was like, yeah, for sure.

Jordan Peterson
You're not in the hippie club anymore. You're in the war club. How long were you. How old were you when you voted for Reagan? I was 26.

26, okay, so you were old enough to have some sense, but you could have easily still been a hippie. So I wouldn't have voted for Reagan when I was back then. I still being too entranced by the blandishments of the left. So why was it that at that time, Reagan was a. Yeah, yeah.

Dennis Quaid
Well, like I said, I had voted for Jimmy Carter about that, and then after, which reminds me very much, those times remind me very much of what's going on today. There was this malaise that Carter had, his malaise speech. You know, the country had lost confidence in itself about who we are. We kind of accepted that we were a nation in decline. You know, it was after Watergate, it was after Vietnam, the oil crisis, the oil crisis, and the hostages.

Jimmy Carter was like, we tried to play nice with the Soviets during that time, as far as peace. Jimmy Carter did a great job in the Middle east with Egypt and Israel, but when it came to the Soviets, it was like we gave away the b one bomber for nothing in return, and we kept for nothing in return, just to show our goodwill. I guess. And the way the real politic works in the world, they just were. They were doing the biggest military buildup and were making.

They were going into Africa. They were all over the world. They were making great strides into Central America and the like. And Reagan, who had always been this kind of coal warrior and great communicator, came along and told people to, like, pick yourself up, you know, there's a brighter day ahead. And it was the perfect time for him.

Jordan Peterson
Right. He also had a very stark message, which was that and very forthright, which was unapologetically that the Soviets were an evil empire, which they certainly were. And so he put his finger on that perfectly. And so, yeah, that was all by design. He didn't talk to the Soviets for the first six years of his presidency because they kept dying on him.

Dennis Quaid
Right, right. That's right. They were putting forward like 190 year old after another. Right. There was a sequence of them that lasted about six months in office.

Right. But up until his presidency, it had been appeasement with the Soviets. I think Kennedy did a really great job of it. Nixon was actually, no matter what you think of him personally, he was. Is probably the most knowledgeable world affairs president we've ever had.

But Carter, he tried to be nice guy. He was a nice guy. He was an agreeable person. The same way he personally got together sadat and begin, which he did a great job of. But, you know, the thing is, being empathic and warm and compassionate, that works real well with people who are honest and decent and.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, right. And at the local. That's exactly right. That's right. Yeah.

That's a within family ethic. Right, right. With the real thugs, it's not the right approach because they just think you're a sheep. These players on the world scene, they're all. They're badasses.

Dennis Quaid
And that's one of the attractions that I had for Reagan, at least. You know, he's a badass, but he's my badass. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And a principled. A principled person.

A principled person. Right. Which was remarkable thing also to pull off, I would say, in Hollywood, because I'm sure that he was subject to the same temptations that people are generally subject to in Hollywood. Yes. And I'm sure gave into quite a few of those temptations.

You know, he's a human being, but, you know, that's. He always picked himself up. He was, you know, his, his movie career, he was a. I think he was disappointed. Yeah.

In his. In his film career, he was he was a. He was a b movie actor. And, you know, the films were never quite up to what they should be. You know, it's kind of like he could have been John Wayne, but John, it was already John.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, right. The niche was there. And you know that he was married to Jane Wyman, whose career went like this, and his just kind of stayed, stayed there. And he became vice president and then president of the Screen Actors Guild during that time because his career was fading, really.

Dennis Quaid
It's there that his real fight against communism started, even though it was kind of rumored. You got to be crazy. But they really, after the Soviet Union fell, come to find. You go to the archives, coming to find out they really were in our unions, especially in Hollywood. And.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, well, it's. Reagan actually had physical scars on his back from fights. He got seriously beat up in a brawl at the union hall, in fact, from that. And he had scars on his back, and so he didn't like communism at all. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Well, it's easy for us. Well, I think still we're blind to the threat. I mean, I see in all of this university uprising that's occurring now, and all of these bad actors who are protesting constantly in inner cities and setting up encampments and building these, like, independent cities, there's a. There's a stream of thought underneath that that's.

Jordan Peterson
Well, it's. It's. It's very much akin to the marxist stream. Yeah, that's stream. You get into the society, into the unions or whatever it is, you start creating mayhem.

Yeah. And chaos. Yeah. You put one at this corner, this corner. Corner, and then you just start creating this mayhem.

Dennis Quaid
And from that, you start confusing people. They feel like they can't do anything about it, and it starts to grow on its own. And Reagan didn't want to expel communists or even the Communist Party. He's principled in that way because he felt like democracy can handle it. In fact, that's what he testified at Congress during that time, during the time of the red scare and all that.

Jordan Peterson
I guess that's what we're trying to figure out right now, too, whether democracy can handle it. Democracy can handle it. It really can. What it takes is for people to be informed, be aware, and it's slow to move, but people got to get involved. And I do feel that pendulum happening in this country now, that people or waking up, you feel that I've had enough because it affects them in their house, in their neighborhoods, you know, just the structure and the substructure of society.

Dennis Quaid
You know, kind of breaking down little by little and where you don't feel safe anymore, you don't. This is. This is not the way I remember it. So how did you figure that out in your early. In your mid twenties?

Jordan Peterson
I mean, I would suspect that the mill you. You were in was pretty radical. Radically progressive. Radically liberal. Like, why?

How was it that you came to be oriented in that more conservative direction or particularly in the anti communist direction? I'm an independent. I've never been a Republican. I've never been in the Republican Party or the Democratic Party. And I've voted both ways all of my life according to what I thought the country needed at that time.

Dennis Quaid
Republicans and Democrats, they need each other. Yes. Yeah. The Republicans need the Democrats because of this social thing that's out there to kind of lead the way. Progressively we move along as a society, and the Democrats need the Republicans to kind of keep a little governor on that and make sure that we grow the right way and that, you know, that we don't leave behind principles and things that are at the bedrock of who we are.

So it's been both ways. So let's go back to Reagan, per se. So you had a meeting, you said in 2017, and you weren't sure that that was a part that was right for you. I thought when I watched the movie, that you embodied Reagan remarkably well. Well, thank you.

I appreciate that. But at the time, tell you the truth, what really is, like, this fear went up my spine. Oh, okay. Because he's one of the most recognizable figures in the world. Right.

Jordan Peterson
It's a big part to screw up. Yeah. And, you know, that's. So I was really hesitant about it. And, you know, I also wanted to make sure it was done right.

Dennis Quaid
And you know what it was. And I. So they arranged for me to go up to the library, which I went to. And from there, we went to. I met his son Michael as well.

And I went to the ranch. And it was when I went up to the ranch, what was the western white house back then above Santa Barbara and went up 5 miles to the top of the mountain, 5 miles of the worst road in California. And I can't believe the queen of England actually tried to go off. She went up that road. She was a tough cookie, that woman.

But you get to the top and he opens up. And I realized that Reagan was not a rich man because this place is like, it's nothing special in how special it is. I mean, the house itself was maybe 1200 square feet. You know, they had a king size bed. Everything was left exactly as they left it.

And it's not a place that you can tour. It's, you know, it's a private home. And they had a king size bed, but it was two single beds that were zip tied together. You know, all of the refrigerator, the stove is ge, because he worked for Ge, and I'm sure he got a deal on that. And you could tell that he had done all the work there himself, just like the legend had said.

But there was a humbleness to it at the same time. But he was not a rich man. He made a lot of people rich, but he was really who he said he was. And that was the thing that really kind of convinced me at the time and started thinking, well, you know, we're both actors. We both have a semi disposition, kind of optimistic about the world.

And there's something about him, though, that. Yeah, that's funny with you, that sunny disposition, because you're not a kind of wide eyed deer in the headlight sort of guy. It's very interesting to see that sunny disposition combined with something more like, what would you say, traditional masculinity. And that's likely what Reagan managed to. Right.

Jordan Peterson
Because he had enough backbone, obviously, to stand up to the communists in the unions and verify. Yeah, right. Exactly. And he meant that. And so.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah, but, yeah, those things. And then there was also in getting into him, because as an actor, what really fascinates me about acting even more and more so is what makes people tick and who are they behind what you think, you know, that's, you know, the motivations go back, way back. There was something in Reagan that was unknowable, I come to find out, and even those that were close to him would say that. That I don't even know if Reagan was aware of it. But there was something, the great communicator, there was a very private place in there that you could not breach.

I'm sure that Nancy knew what that was, but he was a very, very private person underneath at all.

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Jordan Peterson
Yeah, well, I wonder, you know, because of the remarkable role he played. There's something singular about that, right. That, what would you say, integrity and vision that enabled him to see the true nature of the communist threat early, to fight that locally and to learn how to do it, and then to take that battle onto the international stage. Right. To make that the focal point of his presidency.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Even when it was really not the issue. Right. Even when most people were over here about that, he was. That's what makes a great president is when they can point out.

Cause they have all the info and they can say, it's here, that we need to go and convince people that what it is to go in the right direction, remind them of the principles and not just the issue of the day. Well, that's something to get folks right. Exactly. Well, that's something like a prophetic spirit, right. That ability to see the current situation clearly and to see into the future and to put your finger exactly in the right spot.

Jordan Peterson
And it isn't the case, generally speaking, that american presidencies are founded on, say, a foreign policy vision. Right. That's. Foreign policy is important, obviously, but it's usually not central. And it's much easier for a president to default to some fast payoff local issue and to do that continually rather than to fight the battle he fought, which he really fought for decades, right?

Literally for decades. He was the first to say no to the Soviets. But his take was so brilliant and it was disguised and because his idea, and it wasn't originally his idea, it was from a lot of reading, research and just time spent.

Dennis Quaid
He thought the answer was to bankrupt the Soviets. Their economy is minuscule even today to what ours is. They had done so much military spending and they were really, things were so bad over there for the soviet people. Lines just to get food and this and that. 3 hours ago he comes up with Star wars, which didn't really exist.

He got the idea from the movie about lasers that are going to shoot down missiles in space. It didn't exist, and Russians knew it didn't exist. At least 90% they knew it didn't exist. But it was that 10% that Reagan made him think about it. He didn't back off of it at all.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah. And so, but it. That, and that's what, that's a weird blend of. Yeah. That really tore them up.

Yeah. You know, and so they were on this military spending, and finally they just, you know, it just toppled. That's really what brought the Soviet Union down. Yeah. Well, that's.

That's a remarkable climax to a life spent that, that, you know, that originated in local fighting with the communists in the unions in Hollywood. Yeah, yeah. So how did you prepare to, like, how much work did you do? Biographical work and so forth? I don't know exactly how you would prepare.

Dennis Quaid
A lot of it. I. Yeah, a lot of it. I'd lived through that. I'd lived through the times.

I had a lot to do, and I was a history buff to begin with, so, like, you know, I remember the stuff, but I. I watched YouTube was really great because you have all of those. You have everything you can go back and see. And what do you get to. I work outside in a lot, so I work on the physical as a person.

Walk, talk. And then from that it goes inside. And I realize why that is. For instance, like Reagan had, like, a crooked smile. Yeah, right.

Jordan Peterson
Oh, yeah, that's good. Right. And there was. And after you do that a while, you realize, well, why is that? That's why you looked like him in the movie.

That's so cool. There's gotta be. There's some muscles that are deadened in his face. Yeah. From what?

Dennis Quaid
I don't know. But that's, you know, that leads you to the inside of a person, of where they came from, the way he walked, the way he. The way a person grooms themselves, the way they, you know, the image they put out. And then there's the. But really, when you get down to this is the outside, and you have all the news stories and stuff.

But I talked to a lot of people, knew him personally, and. Yeah. And I think that's really where it formed. I didn't want to do an impersonation. That's the thing that scared me.

My thing of doing an impersonation. What's the difference? That impersonation is an act. It's like something you'd see on Saturday Night Live, getting down to who the person is. The real person is quite another thing, a personal side.

It really humanizes them, makes them singular. And I like to go to get a part of a real person, of which I've played many. I'd like to tell it their story from their point of view. Yeah. Which is not from the outside, but what we thought of them.

And not for me to really, I try not to comment too much. I try to tell it from their point of view. What is it like? The question is, what if I, me, were this person in this situation? Right.

Jordan Peterson
Well, that's also what you're transmitting to the audience. Right. That opportunity. So part of the reason that we go to see movies is because by watching the people on screen and by noting their characterization, we can adopt their aim. And as soon as we adopt, like, our emotions orient themselves around aim.

And so if you can embody a character. Intentions. Yeah, exactly. If you can. Or if you can characterize a person's aims, then you can invite the audience to adopt their perspective.

Dennis Quaid
Right. And that means they can live being Reagan, for example, in the course of the movie. That's where we go to the movies. Absolutely. And so, so how long did you play Reagan, and what was the effect of that on you?

Jordan Peterson
Like, I'm curious. When you embody these characters so deeply, it has to, because you're really occupying a different perspective. It has to change you, I would presume. You know, I find myself, like, never really asking that question.

Dennis Quaid
It's something, to me, it's about learning about. It's about learning about myself. Yeah. I don't know how exactly how to sometimes articulate that, but. And I leave.

I leave. I have learned to just leave the character at the end of the day, at the end of the take, in fact, just like, go do something else. Right, right. Because I've already. It's kind of like osmosis.

I've already done all. All the work, and now just let the. Let the subconscious work. Right, right. So you can leave it.

Jordan Peterson
See, there's one of the things that you learn as a therapist is to. Because you're listening to people, you're trying to adopt their perspective, but if you take that home with you, then you. You can't. Over time, they have happened to me, you know? Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
I learned that when I played Jerry Lee Lewis. Oh, yeah. Well, to tell me about that, because. I didn't believe that. Yeah.

At the set, take the truth. And that was great balls of fire. Yeah, it was great balls of fire. And so I wound, at the end, about six months after it came out or maybe a year. Yeah, I was in rehab.

Oh, coking school. I see, I see. And there was a manner in which that was directly attributable to playing that character. Yeah. You know, what did they do, make you manic?

Jordan Peterson
Like, what did. No, well, I was kind of already kind of, you know, I was already kind of along the path and that just. Jerry D. Lewis is like everything on steroids. Right, right, man, that's how you played him, too.

I mean, that's a very high energy character, man. Yeah, he was probably. What? A great pianist and. Yeah, performer.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah, he was one that I got to, like, hang around. He was on the set just about every day. In fact, we shot it in Memphis, and he was over my shoulder going, you get it wrong, son. Like, after take, especially the music stuff. But he was also very generous.

He was one of my piano teachers. I didn't play piano before that. Just like, chopsticks was one of my teachers. And, you know, getting that left hand really was the key to Jerry Lee Lewis because it's a very athletic move of being able to keep that up. And I had a year to prepare for it, and, and it was on cocaine, so I spent 12 hours a day at the, at the piano, you know, during that time, so that.

But it's. I still play, you know, I continued afterwards and. Well, that's a good habit you picked. Yeah, that was the good that came from it because it was, you know, that was a great gift from him. And he was, he could be really so generous of spirit, and then he could be like a 14 year old schoolyard bully at the same time, you know?

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Jordan Peterson
Cause, you know, I've talked to lots of people who know him, and they talk about his generosity and his kindness in person, but he's got that 13 year old schoolyard bully thing, which also. Well, that's the, that's the bully that's, you know, out there about what he believes. And I think he's very principled down at the bottom of it. Yeah. And.

Dennis Quaid
But I think he can be bullish. Yeah, well, it isn't obvious. He was in the construction business, man. You've got to be in the construction business. You got to be hard nosed, that's for sure.

For all that stuff. Because, you know, it's like it's all mafia. You got to watch it. Yeah, that's for sure. You get taken.

Jordan Peterson
So he built a building for a friend of mine in Chicago, like a multi hundred million dollar building. He brought it in under budget and before scheduled. And that was in Chicago. Yeah, that's, you know, that's. But he's also.

Dennis Quaid
He's very. He is very sweet at the same time. He could be that. You look at his kids, you know, he did a great job raising his kids. If you look at it, they are.

They themselves very principled and a great relationship with him. Stuff like that. Right, right. Yeah. I mean, in a way.

I mean, you can't say the same thing about Reagan. There was, you know, we tried not to be like a love letter for this, you know. Cause he was human at the same time. And he, you know, his. He didn't have the greatest relationship with his kids, you know.

Jordan Peterson
Was he too preoccupied? Well, his son, you know, his youngest son, Ron. Ron takes every opportunity he can to talk against them and to really try to tear apart the legacy of his father and his mother and Michael. And he had.

Dennis Quaid
They have a good, decent relationship, he and Michael do. And, you know, Patty, it's. I can't really. I can't speak for any of them, really. And I'm sure they all have their personal reasons for that.

But, you know, he wasn't around much. Cause you're working in the studio, he was working for GE. He was always gone. He comes from that generation that, you know, you grew up and you're pretty independent and on your own as a kid, you know, like the way I grew up, my parents, it wasn't like the nineties that were your helicopter parents or really, people were living at home till they were 25 and stuff like that. You were in a lot of cases, you grew up on a farm.

You were like, 1415. It's like, you need to go find your own life. Well, you know, but anyway, that was. That was the relationship. I think there was a distance there, I think, with his.

With his kids. Yeah, well, it's hard for men to strike a balance between doing what they need to do in the world and being around enough for their family. Yeah. I mean, I struggle with that all the time because I'm always traveling and stuff, and I try to be there as much for my kids, but, you know, parental guilt follows you no matter what, and it's just always there, no matter how good a parent or present parent you might be. So what do you make of his flaws?

Jordan Peterson
Like, how would you characterize them? You spent a long time inhabiting his skin. We talked about Reagan as someone who had a long term vision, who was very committed to it, who was very good at communicating that in a way that was compelling and who. Well, who was one of the main players in the devastation of the Soviet Union. Right.

I would say him. Alexander Solzhenitsyn and the pope were the. Oh, and maybe you could throw Lek Velissa in there, too, as an additional contributor, obviously. Yeah, exactly.

Dennis Quaid
It was like, that was in concert with the pope and with Lech Valenza. It was all in concert with the United States. They wouldn't have been doing what they did, and if you hadn't had the support from the United States that they had, you know? And.

But the. The flaws with everybody's. Everybody's flawed. You know, I think, like, early in his, like, his movie career, I don't think he. I don't think he believed in himself so much when it.

When he came to think. That's why he accepted more second rate scripts. Yeah. I think he was just out to, like, um, work for a living, you know, and it takes. You got to, um.

You got to be willing to wait for things. Yeah. Right. Same time. I mean, that must be.

That's happened in my career, too. Right. I've done stuff for money, and these go. Yeah, right. Yeah.

But luckily, I've been able to get. To get through it. Yeah. And, um, you know, also remember, uh, like, in Iceland when, you know, the final meeting with. Or the meeting with Gorbachev about, we were going to, like, dismantle nuclear weapons, and Gorbachev had said, you know, we'll dismantle all nuclear weapons.

Just give up Star wars. Yeah. And Reagan said no. Yeah, right. And Star wars didn't even really exist.

And. And he had offered to Gorbachev, we'll share the technology with you so that we both have it. Said to know that. But Reagan said no. And I thought at that time, his presidency, I thought that there's that old codger coming up that won't band and that, you know, I didn't think it was finessed the right way.

I mean, I wasn't there, but, you know, it went down. And then also, it's. I think he delegated a lot, which was kind of a strength in that he was an ad man, you know, as president. He showed us what kind of president he was. The best.

Kennedy was also great at it. But as far as being representing a presidential, as an ad band, you know, as an image, he was really good at. But he delegated it a lot. And I think he wasn't able. Like an iron contra, he wasn't able to really keep his finger and to really be aware of what was going on was delegated.

And I don't think he had direct knowledge of it. Once he said, okay, I like these guys. Then there's just AIDS was another thing that I think he really. You can fault him with. He made the wrong decision on Aids.

He really portrayed it from the start as that. A punishment from God for the sin of being gay because it was really recognized as a gay disease or, uh, if you're a drug addict. And. And, you know, I. He was.

In that case, I think he was out of touch and missed the vote, you know, on that. But, you know, it's. He's still a man of principles. But, you know, sometimes people have their faults. Nothing, of course.

There is no perfect. Well, it's worse than that. In some ways. There's no perfect crime. Well, also, sometimes I learned this from reading Nietzsche.

Jordan Peterson
It was the first time I'd really thought about it, that it isn't exactly obvious that someone's faults are clearly distinguishable from their virtues. I mean, you look at Trump, for example, right? He's got that bully aspect, and he's really good at it. Like, he's like the world's best 13 year old bully. Nail you with a nickname, and he's so good at that.

Dennis Quaid
He'll use what you said and then turn around and make a nickname of it. He'll make fun of. Of handicapped people. You know, it's like there's so many. There's been so many times where I just want to say, please.

Why? Why do you have to go there. But then part of that, I can't help but think that part of that is also what makes him intimidating to people. Like the dictator of North Korea. Exactly.

Jordan Peterson
You know, and it's so, like, how do you. Because if he was agreeable, like Jimmy Carter. Jimmy Carter was a very nice man by all, by all appearances and by all reputation, but he's not the sort of person that, like, a real psychopathic leader is going to take seriously. Whereas Trump, like, and maybe this is also why he could deal with the mafia types in the construction industry in Chicago. It's like you have to have a touch of.

It's like Harry Potter. You have to have a touch of the devil inside you in order to understand what the devil's like. Even our allies take care of their self interest first. Yeah. You know, and if that doesn't happen to coincide with us, they're still going to look after themselves first.

Dennis Quaid
And then you have Saddam Hussein, the Ayatollahs, you have some of Putin, you have the Chinese. They are, they're smart. These are really smart people and they know real politics and they are ruthless when it comes to their agendas. And these have been going on a lot longer than one president. Yes, that's right.

These guys are in there for life. And they've. And you take a little Kim over there in North Korea, this is like the third generation since of the grandfather, the father and the son and the son, and they're moving on these things. This is not just talk from them. You have to take them.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, well, it looks to me like you need someone with a certain degree. Of, as far as, like, it's like, let's all be so understanding and everything. They love that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They love that stuff.

Absolutely. Absolutely, absolutely. Well, this is the problem with a kind of a naive agreeableness, is that trying to get along with people works really well unless you're dealing with a shark, in which case it doesn't work at all. All you're doing is laying yourself open to be ripped to shreds. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
That's the way it's always been. And you're going to make things worse. If you're trying to avoid war, you're going to create one, because there's just going to be this red line that they come closer and closer to. If you keep them over there, I say don't cross that. But you keep, if you don't back up what you say, then they'll take advantage of it.

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Jordan Peterson
Yeah, well, I think it's a remarkably. Well, I think Trump accomplished two things that were truly remarkable and I think very much under appreciated. ISIS. Oh, yes. Okay.

We could throw ISIS in there. I was thinking. I was thinking no wars. And I was thinking the Abraham accords. Because Abraham accords, all this stuff, all this stuff that's happening right now would not be happening if the Abraham accords had been signed.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Because, I mean, that in a way that goes way beyond what Carter did. Although what Carter did was incredible, but it was like a real true continuation of that, of Saudi Arabia, because when they were that countries devoted to wiping Israel off the map up until this point. So. So let me ask you this a little bit.

What was the second thing? Um. Oh, no wars in Abraham Accords is what I was thinking was his fundamental achievements. Yeah. Like, those are both major achievements of peace.

Yeah. Which is not necess. It's certainly not what anybody would have predicted at the onset of Trump's presidency. Everybody thought that he'd be a warm. Reagan was going to be a warmonger.

He was called that throughout his presidency, no matter what, you know, and it was especially when he was, like, saying no to these Soviets. You know, it's like, oh, they're going to have a war, but that's really what kept us out of war. Yeah. Yeah, definitely, definitely, definitely. Yeah.

Jordan Peterson
Well, the eighties were. They were an intense time. I mean, people. People were more terrified of nuclear war in the eighties than we're terrified now of climate war. With good reason, too.

Dennis Quaid
I mean, there was. There was at least two incidents where it was, like, this close. I mean, they were seconds away from pushing the button. It turned out to be a flock of geese. Or you take the korean airliner.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah. You know, that shot down. Those are scary. Absolutely. Absolutely.

They. Absolutely. So what's it been like? What's been the consequences of your political engagement? Maybe your political stance in relationship to your career in Hollywood?

Dennis Quaid
I am who I am. And yet, like I said, I, you know, I. I'm an independent. I really, truly am an independent. You know, I voted for Obama once.

I voted for Clinton once. You know, I voted for Ross Perot once. Right, right. You know, so it's. I think you nailed it.

While we were doing Reagan, you know, that was. We were doing it in 2020, and it was, you know, during COVID and stuff, and they tried to cancel me twice. Tell me about that. Once it was over.

I was doing a podcast around that time, and I forgot what outlet I was having an interview with. It's right when COVID started happening and Trump was in those meetings on television every day giving updates about what was happening. Remember those times? And you guys asked me, like, how do you think Trump is handling the crisis? I said, well, you know, at least he's there every day.

He comes out and he's there every day. May not be making. Saying the right things or this or that, but, you know, he's there every day. And. And that's reassuring, you know, to see your leaders out there, that they're doing something about it and over that, you know, the.

You know, they were trying to, like, they blew that up into. That was one time. And then while we were doing the film, there was this false story that came out. This was that I had taken, like, $400,000 from the CDC through Trump to do a commercial for the vaccine or something like that, which was totally false, false narrative. And how I, you know, my son was calling me up about like, hey, man, you're gonna get canceled over.

This is like, people. You know, it was like. And so, you know, but I didn't get canceled, but, well, it was untrue to begin with. So.

Jordan Peterson
Do you have any idea why you did. Why you didn't get canceled? Like, did you do something right? Or do you, like, people get canceled, so why didn't it happen to you when. Because storms kind of I don't know.

Dennis Quaid
I don't know. It's a. It's a. I went on Instagram immediately and, you know, exposed it. Yeah.

But. Right. So there was smoke, but no fire. So it's helpful. I don't know.

Maybe it's. I like, I'm really on neither. Neither side is left and right. I come from a time when you had conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans and their agendas were not so far apart, really. And now it's become this deep, wide valley, and they're about 50 50, so it's hard to get anything done.

Jordan Peterson
That's a weird thing. I've spent a fair bit of time in Washington and a lot of time talking to Democrats and Republicans. I've had more success talking to Republicans. Frankly, it's been easier for me to talk to them. And I don't think it's because I'm particularly, certainly not initially conservative in my orientation, although I think I've become more conservative in some ways.

The Democrats, their fundamental sin, as far as I can tell, is that they can't draw a boundary at all between the mainstream Democrats, which are the majority and the minority of radicals. Yeah. The inmates are controlling the asylum. Absolutely. Well, and these are exactly the same people, as far as I'm concerned, that Reagan was facing off against in the 1950s in Hollywood.

It's exactly the same thing. And, like, I've asked 50 Democrats that I've talked to, when does the left go too far? And I've never got a straight answer from any of them. And that's that God's honest truth, right? It's like, well, obviously the left can go too far, right?

I mean, remember the Soviet Union? Remember Maoist China? It's like they went too far. When I asked RFK that, he said, I don't want to have that kind of divisive campaign. Really?

Dennis Quaid
Brilliant, man. But you asked him what? Well, I asked him when the left goes too far, and he said, I don't want to run that kind of divisive campaign. It's like, well, you know, the radicals are pulling your party to the left in a major way, and maybe it's time to draw some boundaries. Like, for me, I'm not a fan at all of the equity move.

Jordan Peterson
The idea of equality of outcome, that's a catastrophic idea. It eliminates individual difference. And why would you do that, especially if you're interested in diversity? It's like, it can't be equality of outcome if you want people to be different. Like, those things don't go together.

You're going to compare people on absolutely every dimension and you're going to exist on equality. You're going to wind up handcuffing everyone and basically coddling people where they can't get ahead because your life's tough for everybody around here. And I definitely, totally believe in a safety net socially that wasn't originally part of the constitution, what it was, what the government is supposed to provide. I definitely do believe in that.

Dennis Quaid
But there's some government sponsored programs that you go back, like Social Security, these things that were meant to help people. You go back to the 19th century and there was like nothing.

This is where all this stuff started, where you had the Vanderbilts and the Morgans, Rockefellers and everything. And there was the Carnegie. There was no checks and balances on wealth. They were, Carnegie was rivaled. The government himself.

You put them all together, they had more cash than the government did and there was no checks and balances on that. And a lot of people, they wind up then with up here and then down here. And so I think some of the things that came into being social networks and the Democrats can't take credit for all of them. No, no. Teddy Roosevelt was very progressive.

He was a Republican and Lincoln, of course, and things. But at the same time, you can go too far about.

And what is the point in the end, it seems to me, when it goes too far, it's when it's not about what they're talking about, it's about power. Yeah, yeah. It's totally just about power. They don't care if you don't care what you're tearing down. If you look at the political spectrum like a distribution between left and right, as you get farther out on the fringes, you get out of the political, I think entirely is that you get into the domain of people who are using the political for nothing but power.

Jordan Peterson
They're very different. They're exactly the psychopaths that we were. Just the marxist agenda, you know, create chaos and move into that and do it. Yeah. And it's all about compassion.

But actually what it's about is power. Right. Yeah. The Democrat, I mean, the Republicans have done it as well. I wasn't really very proud of the Republican Party back in the nineties.

Dennis Quaid
In a sense, they played kind of the personal the way they were with Clinton and that it was like they weren't working together, like they could have been working together. And it seemed like to me like a power move on the republican party back in the nineties. You go into the eighties and into the nineties. So I just did this last year. I did a seminar on exodus on the story of Moses.

Jordan Peterson
And Moses is the archetypal leader and his fundamental temptation and flaw is power. Right. So it's always the case that in the political realm the temptation is to default to power and to corrupt enterprise. Yeah, like with Clinton, you know, he did something which is not a crime, but because he lied about this, then they go into like the Republicans pounce. They, they impeached him.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah, they impeached him. That was, you know, a play for power.

They failed ultimately in that times were so good. And Clinton also was very good. About two years into his presidency, he was like a duck. He wasn't going to make it for the second election because times are bad.

He was so pragmatic and so smart that he basically absconded the republican agenda, plopped it down and went state of the union speech. Said the era of welfare in this country is over, you know, and that's how he won the second election. And he was a very pragmatic person. Small actions can have big benefits like how taking care of your gut can support whole body health. Thats why at Dailywire were excited to partner with seed.

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Jordan Peterson
It seemed to me that Hollywood took a walloping blow with COVID and then the strike. And one of the things I've noticed about myself is I used to go to movies all the time to theaters. I love going to movies and I've gone to very few movies since COVID It's kind of like, I don't know if I got out of the habit. It's something like that partly. I used to know where to get reliable reviews for upcoming movies.

Like, I was in the stream. I knew what was coming out of Hollywood. I made plans to go see the movies. Right. That all disappeared.

And now I don't know how to get back to that. But I think. And you're wondering, is it because of my age? Must be. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Well, that could be too. Although, see, I don't know. Or is it just that way? Well, I also don't know that.

Jordan Peterson
And of course, the media landscape is fragmented, too. And so it's hard to figure out what sources you can rely on. The way they advertise movies is nowhere near what it used to be. It used to be just like an ad in the newspaper. And that was enough.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. And then it became like tv ads and audiences could smell a movie. Yeah. Right. It was like, so surprising.

It was just like, I remember for me personally breaking away when that came out, it was hard. There's no advertising or anything like that. And we're driving to the theater to go for the opening of it on that Friday, and there's a line around. The book, well, people are in the movie. How do they know?

Jordan Peterson
Well, that's the thing is that these things are very fragile, is that we never know what makes a whole enterprise work. And if people are movie fans, they're in the movie culture. They track it. And if you break that, it's like, that's gone. Oh, yes.

Okay. So, you know, that's gone. You don't see Roger Ebert on television anymore. These, there was the whole culture that went with it. Yeah, yeah.

Dennis Quaid
Everybody watched. Whether the movie's coming up and like, you know, laying them out there, what they're about. Yeah. And all that. And, yeah.

Jordan Peterson
You know, and you knew months in. Advance, really, you know, great debates on, on what they were about. And so how do you view the current reality and the potential future of the film industry?

Are there still stars? That's the thing. Who was the last movie star? Well, from what I've been able to understand, the only star truly standing, Leonardo DiCaprio.

Dennis Quaid
That's going too far back. Leonardo, Leo. Yeah. Last movie. They're still out there.

Yeah, they do occur. Yeah, they're out there. But they also, my sense, too, is that, and I don't really know what to make of this, that they're, are they the last of a dying breed. Well, you know, the news, like, it's gone from. It's gone to social media.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah. That's where the new movie stars are. I mean, Justin Bieber, first star, totally created on YouTube. Yeah. You know, not the.

Dennis Quaid
Nowhere near the traditional way. Yeah, I'm doing it. And that actors now are the same way. They have their. Their Instagram page, they, you know, self advertising and.

But used to be back then movie stars, like in, you know, going up and really until the eighties, nineties, true movie star. You wouldn't do a talk show on tv. You would avoid tv like the play. Right, right. Jack Nicholson.

You would never see him on a talk show. He'd do one interview in a prestigious magazine where there'd be time. Playboy, whatever it was, that was. That's part of that protection of exclusivity. And you would, you know, some guy would spend a couple of days with him or something, but you really wouldn't.

There was a mystery to him. Yeah, yeah. So that when you went to the theater, really what makes a movie star is you go to the theater, they are a mystery. You don't know too much, really, about their life. So you want to print your own life on them.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, yeah, definitely. That's what happens. Yeah. You know, you see them for something inside you. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
And that's what makes a movie star. Well, you actually don't want to know much about the person life of an actor. And now it's like, well, it got to be that you just do everything about everybody. Yeah. And that brings them down to earth, and that's not good if you're a star.

Well, it doesn't create mystery. Yeah. Right. Put it that way. I wonder, too, how much of it is the fact that, like, when you and I grew up, being on television was like.

Jordan Peterson
That was a remarkable and unlikely occurrence to be personally on television, even to know someone who was on television. The bandwidth was so narrow, and then the movies were above that. Yeah, yeah. It was easier to be on tv than on the movies. Right.

But now everyone is on tv all the time. Yeah. Right. And so that. That.

That's another borderline between the public and the actor that's disappeared. It's like everybody is video. Yeah. The time. They're young, there's no going back.

No, no. The world has no, no. And. And, you know, good things come out of it. Good thing.

What do you see that's good coming out of it? Well, for one thing, there's really a broad communication in the zeitgeist. People have taken over their own stories. And you could be like me and choose not to participate very much. I mean, I have an Instagram page, I have a Facebook page, but I didn't grow up with it, so it seems like a real chore to me.

Yeah. And. Right. It's not your culture. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
And I like face to face communication and I like this, this, you know, why is this great? Why do you. Cause it's. It's. It's a real.

I feel like I'm this. That is one good thing about today, as opposed to then, is that you could do an interview, like with a magazine and, you know, somebody who was out to do a job on you because they kind of feel like they build you up. You know, you have this fall and then you have the comeback, but, like, with this, it's unfettered. Yeah. And I get to represent myself.

Jordan Peterson
Yeah, yeah, yeah. In my way. YouTube's great for that and podcasts are great for that. And they really reward unfettered communication. Like the people I talk to, anybody I've talked to on my YouTube channel, who politics or is false, they get slaughtered.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Like, if they send, it comes out very quickly. You find out who people are. You can't hide so much. Yeah, well, that's.

Jordan Peterson
Joe Rogan told me. He said, you know, you can tell if there's anything to anyone after about 20 minutes. Yeah. Because you can. Well, people who are hollow, they're exhausted.

Especially in a podcast like Rogan's, which is 3 hours long, it's like, there better be some depth to you to get through that conversation in an interesting manner for three bloody hours. They're kind of like, you know, let's see what happens, like, 30 years from now when, you know, some of this stuff is going to come back to haunt people, you know, I mean, some of the things that I did and thought or whatever, you know, back in my teens, twenties, man, I'm so glad it's not on YouTube, that's for sure, man. I feel exactly the same way. I can't imagine. You know, I remember most of my adolescents and my adolescent friends as really a nonstop parade of stupid decisions.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah, you should be able to make those stupid decisions in private, right? That's for sure, man. The last thing I would have wanted was video records of that, right. For it to be distributed around the school. I can't imagine, like, it was a difficult enough enterprise trying to negotiate the weird social world of adolescence without having to be absolutely terrified that some goddamn stupid thing you did was going to be permanently instantiated in the minds of everyone in your town.

Jordan Peterson
God, I just can't imagine what that would be like. Terrible. Terrible. Yeah. And you can't just move away from it because it's the energy.

Well, that's right. That's right. Well, that's right. Well, one of the wonderful things about human memory is that we forget. Yeah, right.

The remembering, that's not exactly a miracle. Like things happened and so now, you know, it's like, well, can you forget? Can you put it behind you? Well, not if it's permanently recorded. Yeah, yeah.

No, that's just. That's not good. Tell me what you're working on now and what you have in the future. Maybe what you're excited about on the film front. Well, I've started a production company with my wife and business partner and make films that I really believe in and that we all believe in as a company and, you know, kind of based on certain movies in my career, like, you know, like, to me, like breaking away the right stuff.

Dennis Quaid
The rookie, the parent trap, that, yeah, it's a brand, basically. And that I want to do. And part of that we have a thing, Diamondback, which is a film hopefully we're going to be shooting this year, that very much like a movie from the seventies and that I really believe in. What's the plot of Diamondback? It's, you ever see like Thunderbolt and Lightfoot or really a great Sam Peckinpah movie?

It's like that. I see. And it's modern at the same time. It takes place in the sixties. True story.

This kid who was in the Marines, you know, stationed in Quantico gets out of the Marines. He's just, his wife died while he was in the Marines, and they wouldn't let him go home, you know, shoot, died of cancer. And he just, he's young and he's just like, it's sort of like, you know, Oswald, you know, he got out. He was a Marine. He got out.

And, you know, these guys that get out of the military and they just kind of like ramble around, they're kind of, they don't have a path. He wound up robbing a bank. Really smart kid. Wound up robbing a bank. Robbed and then robbed two banks in the same day, same town.

Jordan Peterson
Well, for a pound. Went to, you know, when he was being sentenced. He got caught. It was like in the desert. It was one of these chases through the desert, which is like a modern western.

Dennis Quaid
This looks fantastic. And he told the judge when he was sentenced that, just give me 20 years because it doesn't matter, because I'm going to be getting out. I'm going to break out. And then he did. And then he got caught again.

Then he broke out again. And he eventually got. There was this one cop that was chasing him who became like a father's son thing, and he got involved with this, with this case. They wound up on like the third time they shot each other in the desert. Right.

Jordan Peterson
So you got a sixties adventure, you. Got a western anti hero. It's an anti hero, the rebel hero turned anti hero role. That which is very reminiscent of the movies of the. Of the seventies.

Are you good at evaluating scripts? Yeah, I've read enough of them. I know by page, page 30 will really tell you. I mean, I might be 15. I'll go, where is this page 30?

Dennis Quaid
If it hadn't happened yet, it's. It ain't gonna happen. And that's how I choose movies. I read a script and I am an audience member with a first time experience. Can you imagine?

Yeah, I can. Yeah. And it's funny how, like every movie I've ever done, it's the script. Yeah. In that description part, but you can certainly elevate it from there.

But basically it's the story. That's what. How many movies? That's what really gets me is this story. How many movies have you done?

I think about, we're getting up towards. I know it's at least 120, but it might be 150. I don't know. Wow. Wow.

Yeah. And what percentage of those do you think are good? Well, I wasn't exactly. Or live up to what I thought they would be. Yeah.

Jordan Peterson
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That's expressvpn.com jordan. Yeah, probably. I'd say maybe 20%. Oh, yeah, yeah, maybe 20%. And then there's, you know, there's those ones that are just really close to me.

Dennis Quaid
I have different reasons for loving some of the movies that, that's different from an audience because I watched myself in film, and I remember it has so much to do with what was going on in my life at the time. You know what I mean? So in the scientific literature, the best predictor of quality. So let's say the impact of a scientist's work on other scientists, that's a good measure of quality. The best predictor is quantity.

Jordan Peterson
Right. So there's a real tight relationship. It's very difficult to do anything of note without doing a lot of things. Yeah. So you're gonna.

That's true if you do. A lot of them were taking chances. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Some of the more financially was reason motivated. Yeah.

Dennis Quaid
But, you know, try to do things. I've never had any kind of strategy in my career except to try to do as many different types of things as possible. Right. I typecast myself. Right.

Genre. Yeah. And whatever. That broadens what you're able to do, too. Well, that's my interest rate.

It's like, what makes people tick, you know? What's this something, you know, the best things are something that really scares you, because fear is, like, really great motive. Like Reagan, for example. It's a really great motivator. When does the movie come out?

When does it comes out? August 30. Yeah. Yeah. You excited about it?

I'm really excited about it, yeah. I, you know, distributed widely. We went through a process in the editing of it as well. Yeah. That, um.

That got to a place that I'm really happy with it. Oh, good. Tell you the truth. Yeah. Oh, good.

Jordan Peterson
Oh, good. I wonder how much it's changed since the screener I saw last year. You have this, you have the script, you have the. The movie you shot, and then you had the movie you edit. Yeah, yeah.

No kidding. That's where it really happened. That's for sure, man. Yeah, yeah. Something to be able to edit well.

Dennis Quaid
It's where you really get the point of view. Yeah, yeah. And you point at the story. Yeah, yeah, yeah. All right, sir.

Is that it? That's it for this side. For everybody watching and listening. I'm going to continue this conversation behind the daily wire plus platform for another half an hour so you could join us there. Is there anything else you want to.

There was one other thing that I'm working on, which is the name of the company. Our company is Bonnie Dale, by the way. That's my mother's maiden name or her middle name. And I'm working on happy face right now. Paramount, that is.

I'm playing her serial killer. Oh, yeah. Happy face one from Canada, by the way. Oh, yeah. Well, we have the best serial killers.

Yeah, you do. Yeah, you really do. Killed that combination of nice and evil. That's a, that's a particularly canadian thing. Yeah.

This is really. It's really about. He killed like, eight women over five years in the nineties, but yet he was a doting father. And it's really about his relationship. It's really about her relationship.

Jordan Peterson
What's his name? Do you remember her relationship with her dad? Jesus. I won't tell you who it is. Brutal.

Happy. Look up. Happy face killer. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

So what's it like to inhabit a role like that? It's so much fun. You're a bad man. All right. Sir Keith Jesperson.

Thank you very much. So thank you. As I said, everyone join us on the Daily web plus side. I think I'll walk through Mister Quaid's autobiography and find out, you know, what set him on a role to be an actor. I'd like to find out about, also about why that's a family affair, because it is with the Quaid's and quite remarkably and successfully.

And so there's an interesting story there. So if you're inclined to join us on the Daily wear plus side, please feel free to do so. Thank you to the film crew here in Scottsdale for making this possible. Thank you very much for flying in. I'm very much looking forward to seeing how the Reagan film does.

Have you run into any distribution problems with it? Is it going to be widely distributed? No one's resisting that? No, it's going to be widely. It's going to be, I think, 3000 or 3500 theaters.

Oh, great, great, great. Well, I wish you all the luck with that. It's not like we shopped it around all these years. It was just, we kind of waited till we got the film where we wanted and then shopped it, it seems. With all the agitation on campus and all the politics that's in the air.

And the upcoming election in November, that August might be a hot time to release it. Well, I. Well, I. One of the things was I didn't want it to come out in an election year and definitely didn't. And then it's coming out now, an election year, and turns out it's a perfect time for it to come out.

Dennis Quaid
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Seems like it might be. Seems like it might be.

Jordan Peterson
All right. Say hello to Mister Johnson for me. Will do. All right. All right.

Thank you, everybody, for watching and listening and say anora.