List of actors who have played the president of the United States
This is a partial list of actors or actresses who have played the President of the United States, both fictional and non-fictional, in movies and on television series.
Presidents who played themselves
Movies
| Actor | President | Movie |
|---|---|---|
| Bill Clinton | Himself | A Child's Wish (1997) |
| Bill Clinton | Himself | Contact (1997) |
Television
| Actor | President | TV show |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Carter | Himself | Home Improvement (1994) |
| Gerald Ford | Himself | Dynasty (1983) |
Actors who played real presidents
Movies
Television
Actors who played fictional presidents
Movies
| Actor | President | Movie |
|---|---|---|
| Forrest J. Ackerman | The President | Amazon Women on the Moon (1987) |
| Edward Albert | former President Barry Carlisle | Guarding Tess (1994) |
| Alan Alda | The President | Canadian Bacon (1995) |
| William Atherton | President John Fields | Executive Power (1997) |
| Dan Aykroyd | President William Haney | My Fellow Americans (1996) |
| Stanley Anderson | The President | The Rock (1996); Armageddon (1998) |
| Lloyd Bochner | President Hayden | Loyal Opposition: Terror in the White House (1998) |
| John Beck | President Fallbrook | The Alternate (2000) |
| Michael Belson | The President | Wag the Dog (1997) |
| Jeff Bridges | President Jackson Evans | The Contender (2000) |
| Lloyd Bridges | President Thomas "Tug" Benson | Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993) |
| Arthur Byron | President Stanley Craig | The President Vanishes (1934) |
| George Clooney | President Devlin | Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003) |
| Ronny Cox | President Jack Neil | Murder at 1600 (1997) |
| Terry Crews | President Camacho | Idiocracy (2006) |
| James Cromwell | President Robert Fowler | The Sum of All Fears (2002) |
| Robert Culp | The President | The Pelican Brief (1993) |
| Jim Curley | The President | In the Line of Fire (1993) |
| Michael Douglas | President Andrew Shepherd | The American President (1995) |
| Sam Douglas | The President ("John") | Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London (2004) |
| Richard Dreyfuss | The President | Fail-Safe (2000) |
| R. Lee Ermey | President Richard Benson | Megiddo: The Omega Code 2 (2001) |
| Henry Fonda | The President | Fail-Safe (1964); Meteor (1979) |
| Harrison Ford | President James Marshall | Air Force One (1997) |
| Morgan Freeman | President Tom Beck | Deep Impact (1998) |
| James Garner | President Matt Douglas | My Fellow Americans (1996) |
| Gene Hackman | President Alan Richmond | Absolute Power (1997) |
| Gene Hackman | former President Monroe Cole | Welcome to Mooseport (2004) |
| Mark Harmon | President James Foster | Chasing Liberty (2004) |
| Gregory Harrison | President Jonathan Hayes | First Daughter (1999); First Target (2000); First Shot (2002) |
| Phil Hartman | President Dillard | The Second Civil War (1997) |
| John Heard | President Ted Matthews | My Fellow Americans (1996) |
| Edward Herrmann | President Arthur Fellwick | Atomic Train (1999) |
| Hal Holbrook | President Adam Scott | The Kidnapping of the President (1980) |
| James Earl Jones | President Douglass Dilman | The Man (1972) |
| James Karen | President Mitchell | Freedom Strike(1998) |
| Michael Keaton | President Mackenzie | First Daughter (2004) |
| Perry King | President Blake | The Day After Tomorrow (2004) |
| Ben Kingsley | President Gary Nance | Dave (1993) |
| Kevin Kline | President William Harrison Mitchell | Dave (1993) |
| Alexander Knox | President Hughes | Crack in the Mirror (1960) |
| Ronald Lacey | President Widmark | The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) |
| Martin Landau | President Morose | By Dawn's Early Light (1990) |
| Jack Lemmon | President Russell P. Kramer | My Fellow Americans (1996) |
| Charles Macaulay | The President | Splash (1984} |
| Fredric March | President Jordan Lyman | Seven Days in May (1964) |
| E.G. Marshall | The President | Superman II (1980) |
| Christopher McDonald | The President | Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002) |
| Donald Moffat | President Bennett | Clear and Present Danger (1994) |
| James Naughton | President Davenport | First Kid (1996) |
| Jack Nicholson | President James Dale | Mars Attacks! (1996) |
| Leslie Nielsen | President Harris | Scary Movie 3 (2003); Scary Movie 4 (2005) |
| Oliver North | Himself/President North | Canadian Bacon (1995) |
| Donald Pleasence | President White | Escape from New York (1981) |
| Kevin Pollak | President Walter Emerson | Deterrence (1999) |
| Bill Pullman | President Thomas J. Whitmore | Independence Day (1996) |
| Dennis Quaid | President Staton | American Dreamz (2006) |
| Randy Quaid | President A. Thorton Osgood II | Mail to the Chief (2000) |
| David Rasche | President Ballentine | The Sentinel (2006) |
| James Rebhorn | President Signoff | The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000) |
| John Ritter | President Chet Roosevelt | Americathon (1979) |
| Cliff Robertson | President Jack Cahill | Escape from L.A. (1996) |
| Tim Robbins | The President | Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) |
| Chris Rock | President Mays Gilliam | Head of State (2003) |
| Roy Scheider | The President | Chain of Command (2000) |
| Roy Scheider | President Carlson | Executive Target (1997) |
| Roy Scheider | President Robert Baker | The Peacekeeper (1997) |
| Peter Sellers | President Merkin Muffley | Dr. Strangelove (1964) |
| Peter Strauss | President James Sanford | XXX: State of the Union (2004) |
| Billy Bob Thornton | The President | Love Actually (2003) |
| John Travolta | President Jack Stanton | Primary Colors (1998) |
| Ivan Volkman | The President | How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967) |
| Jack Warden | President Roberts | Being There (1979) |
| Sam Waterston | President William Foster | The Enemy Within (1994) |
| Sam Waterston | President Edward Manchester | Shadow Conspiracy (1997) |
| Kenneth Welsh | President Raymond Becker | The Day After Tomorrow (2004) |
| Richard Widmark | President Paul Roudebush | Vanished (1971) |
| Luke Wilson | President Not Sure | Idiocracy (2006) |
Television
| Actor | President | Program |
|---|---|---|
| Beau Bridges | President Paul Hollister | 10.5 (2004) |
| Beau Bridges | President Hank Landry | Stargate SG-1 (2007) |
| Ronny Cox | President Robert Kinsey | Stargate SG-1 (1997-Present) |
| Dabney Coleman | President Richmond | My Date with the President's Daughter (1998) |
| James Cromwell | former President D. Wire Newman | The West Wing (NBC, 2004) |
| William Devane | President Henry Hayes | Stargate SG-1 (2004) |
| Robert Foxworth | President Charles Halsey | The Outer Limits/Episode "Trial By Fire" (1996) |
| John Goodman | Acting President Glen Allen Walken | The West Wing (NBC, 2003) |
| Dennis Haysbert | President David Palmer | 24 (FOX, 2002-2004) |
| Hal Holbrook | President Maxwell Monroe | Under Siege (1986) |
| Gregory Itzin | President Charles Logan | 24 (FOX, 2005-2006) |
| Ken Kercheval | President Cliff Barnes | Dallas, final episode Conundrum (aired May 3, 1991) |
| Will Lyman | President Theodore Roosevelt (Teddy) Bridges | Commander in Chief (ABC, 2005) |
| Barry Morse | President Johnny Cyclops | Whoops Apocalypse (ITV, 1982) |
| Geoff Pierson | President John Keeler | 24 (FOX, 2005) |
| Ford Rainey | The President | Lost in Space, 1965. |
| Jason Robards | President Richard Monckton | Washington: Behind Closed Doors (mini-series, 1977) |
| George C. Scott | President Samuel A. Tresch | Mr. President (television, 1987) |
| Martin Sheen | President Josiah Bartlet | The West Wing (NBC, 1999-2006) |
| Jimmy Smits | President Matthew Santos | The West Wing (NBC, 2006) |
| Unknown | former President Owen Lassiter | The West Wing (NBC, 2004) |
| D.B. Woodside | President Wayne Palmer | 24 (FOX, 2007-present) |
Actresses who played fictional presidents
Movies
| Actor | President | Movie |
|---|---|---|
| Ernestine Barrier | Madame President | Project Moonbase (1953) |
| Polly Bergen | President Leslie McCloud | Kisses for My President (1964) |
| Sally Champlin | President of the United States | The Woman Every Man Wants (2001) |
| Joan Rivers | President Rivers | Les Patterson Saves the World (1987) |
| Loretta Swit | President Barbara Adams | Whoops Apocalypse (1986) |
| Lynne Thigpen | President Marjorie Bota | Bicentennial Man (1999) |
Television
| Actor | President | Program |
|---|---|---|
| Geena Davis | President Mackenzie Allen | Commander in Chief (2005-2006). |
| Patty Duke | President Julia Mansfield | Hail to the Chief (1985) |
| Patricia Wettig | President Caroline Reynolds | Prison Break (2006). |
Trivia
- Ronald Reagan was an actor who later became President.