Lyndon Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, has appeared as a supporting character in many films, including 2016’s Jackie (where was played by John Carroll Lynch), Ava DuVernay’s Selma, which featured Tom Wilkinson in the role, and had more of a main part to play in the HBO movie All the Way, with Bryan Cranston.
Now it’s Johnson’s turn to get the big screen biopic treatment with Rob Reiner’s LBJ. Woody Harrelson, buried under a mountain of makeup, plays Johnson as he becomes vice president to John F. Kennedy (Jeffrey Donovan) and later becomes president after Kennedy is assassinated. Lots of wigs and over-the-top accents follow. LBJ also stars Richard Jenkins, Bill Pullman, Michael Stahl-David, Jeffrey Donovan, Doug McKeon, and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Johnson’s wife Lady Bird.
LBJ premiered almost a year ago at the 2016 Toronto Film Festival, where it barely made a blip and took away mostly negative reviews, including ours, which likely isn’t a very good sign. But Reiner’s film will finally see the light of day on November 3. You can watch the first trailer for LBJ below.
After powerful Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson (Woody Harrelson) loses the 1960 Democratic presidential nomination to Senator John F. Kennedy (Jeffrey Donovan), he agrees to be his young rival’s running mate. But once they win the election, despite his extensive legislative experience and shrewd political instincts, Johnson finds himself sidelined in the role of vice president. That all changes on Nov. 22, 1963, when Kennedy is assassinated and Johnson, with his devoted wife Lady Bird (Jennifer Jason Leigh) by his side, is suddenly thrust into the presidency. As the nation mourns, Johnson must contend with longtime adversary Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Michael Stahl-David) and one-time mentor Georgia Senator Richard Russell (Richard Jenkins) as he seeks to honor JFK’s legacy by championing the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964.