Fake Presidents

Dermot Mulroney's fake President is back in Disney Plus's MARVEL'S SECRET INVASION, and so are we! After covering episodes 1 & 2 in our last look of this series, we now get into episodes 3 & 4. Who was right in our bet on who would be a secret Skrull in this series? We got our answer way earlier than we expected...

And then, at the 32:00 minute mark of the podcast, we discuss the returning fake President in Amazon Prime's TOM CLANCY'S JACK RYAN, season 4. Did they finally make him interesting?!

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Ben and Eric are doing something they've never done before -- covering a TV series as it airs in (near) real time!

But first, they got some more FOR ALL MANKIND stuff to talk about, now that Ben has FINALLY seen the show.

THEN they just had to dive back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe when they saw that the MCU was introducing yet ANOTHER fake president. The POTUS is not William Sadler from IRON MAN 3. It's not Harrison Ford from the upcoming THUNDERBOLTS and CAPTAIN AMERICA movies. It's... Dermot Mulroney (NOT Dylan McDermott)!

Can Sam Jackson's Nick Fury stop an army of shapeshifting aliens from replacing world leaders and starting a global thermal nuclear war to destroy all (human) life on Earth? Do the politics of the superheroes & alien-saturated MCU have any resemblance to the real world anymore? Is the POTUS really a lizard person in disguise?!

Let's see what we can suss out...

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(We're still on Twitter, too, but who knows for how long!)

Michael Bay's THE ROCK has peak Nicolas Cage, silver age Sean Connery, and a shockingly effective (if completely unnecessary) fake president. Best summer movie ever? Could be! Best fake president ever? Let's discuss...

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A special episode!

From mayor to television legend, few people are as representative of the cross section of politics and pop culture as the late, great Jerry Springer.

And did you know that he also played a fake president in a movie? We didn't! Not 'til we read about it one of his many obituaries.

Jerry Springer is the President of the United States in 2004's THE DEFENDER both starring and directed by Dolph Lundgren, and we watched it so you don't have to!

(well, we watched most of it)

Our first trip into the Clancy-verse!

Amazon Prime's TOM CLANCY'S JACK RYAN stars John Krasinski as the titular CIA analyst turned field agent. In season one, he saves a president's life. In season three, he saves a president's ass.

Join us as we tackle the big questions: How does THE OFFICE alum Krasinski stack up to the Jack Ryans of Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, Ben Affleck, and Chris Pine? Do the politics of Tom Clancy still hold up in 2023? And the biggest question of all: Why is this show so indebted to NASH BRIDGES?

Got a question? Comment? Suggestion for a movie to cover? Email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com

It's Presidents' Day!

Which means we're back with another very special episode for this very special holiday. This time we're asking the question: What already existing fictional characters from pop culture should become POTUS within their movie/TV universes? From famous commercial pitchmen to the world of superheroes and even a dip into the works of Pixar, we leave no stone unturned as we look for the ideal candidate.

BUT before we get into that, we dive into some BREAKING NEWS regarding the addition of two new fake presidents in two big movie franchises... is Harrison Ford really stepping back into the oval? (Sure looks it!) And so is...Nick Offerman?! (Outlook more hazy on that one)

Comment, question, suggestion? Email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com!

After an unexpected hiatus, we're back!

And so is Morgan Freeman!

This time, Olympus isn't falling. It's the sky that's falling. 1998's DEEP IMPACT features an iconic fake president that originally made our Mount Rushmore of fake presidents, but does this speechifying fake prez still feel so iconic two decades later? One of us certainly doesn't think so...

Got a question? Email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com.

Eric is a big fan of Apple TV+'s sci-fi drama FOR ALL MANKIND. Ben has a never seen an episode. Will Ben want to watch the series after Eric tells him all about the alt-history presidential politics of a world where the Soviets beat the Americans to the moon and the space race never ended?

Let's find out...

Find us on Twitter (@Fake_Presidents) and Instagram (@Fake_Presidents) or email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com to join the conversation!

This week, Ben and Eric head back into world of Marvel comic book adaptations with the 2nd entry in 20th Century Fox's long-running X-MEN movie franchise. Not only is there a fake president in it, but there's a whole lotta action in the White House!

X2: X-MEN UNITED stars the usual gamut of mutants -- Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Halle Berry, Ian McKellen, Famke Janssen, Anna Paquin, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn -- this time joined by SUCCESSION's Brian Cox as "Colonel Striker" and the one and only Cotter Smith as "President McKenna."

Who is Ben's favorite mutant? Does the U.S. have a secret military base in Canada? Why is it ironic that Patrick Stewart is asked to sit through the entire movie? Why does this fake president allow public tours to go through the West Wing while he's working in the oval office?!?

Find us on Twitter (@fake_presidents) and Instagram (@fake_presidents) or email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com to join the conversation!

We're back! Hiatus over! Thanks for your patience!

Based on a TV show created by comedy legends Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, 2008's GET SMART has some pretty big phone-shoes to fill. Does James Caan have what it takes to play a nameless President? (DEFINITELY.) Does he deserve better than being asked to do a warmed over George W.? (PROBABLY.) What about skinny Dwayne Johnson? Can you trust him not to secretly be a bad guy?! (NO YOU CANNOT.)

Steve Carell, Anne Hathaway, and Alan Arkin get to meet a fake president, too.

Which member of the GET SMART cast was in a fantasy football league with podcast hosts Ben and Eric? GOTTA LISTEN TO FIND OUT! (Hint: The actor is known for being quite the, um, hero...)

Find us on Twitter (@Fake_Presidents) and Instagram (@Fake_Presidents), or email us at fakepresidents [at] gmail.com to join the conversation!