Robin Williams will play President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Lee Daniels’ drama The Butler, a movie which will tell the story of Eugene Allen, a black butler who worked at the White House from 1952 to 1986, serving under eight presidents.
Williams joins an already impressive cast of actors which includes Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, Matthew McConaughey, John Cusack, Alan Rickman, Terence Howard, Cuba Good Jr., Jane Fonda, Nicole Kidman, Lenny Kravitz, Colman Domingo and Jess Williams.
One has to ask though, is the comedic actor Williams the right person to play the former president? Many people may not think of Williams as such a serious man but may rather see him as his more comedic soft character Mrs. Doubtfire.
One of Williams’ most successful roles is when he played Mrs. Doubtfire in the movie of the same name. In that film, the actor disguises himself as a female housekeeper to spend secret time with his children held in custody by his former wife. Mrs. Doubtfire, along with the actor, won many accolades and praises for the film that was deemed a comedy.
The actor has played in other serious movies before, such as when he played in film Good Will Hunting, but he very much claims to be a comedian, a genre which could be totally different from playing the Commander-in-Chief of the most powerful state in the world. The audience will just have to be the judge, The Butler will start shooting later this month New Orleans.
