'Reagan' actor Jon Voight talks God's faithfulness, warns of dangerous ideologies permeating the US
Veteran actor Jon Voight has one of the most impressive careers in Hollywood, with an Academy Award, four Golden Globes and numerous other accolades under his belt. But according to the 85-year-old actor, all of it is meaningless without faith in Jesus Christ.
“I was raised Catholic, but I got a little bit away from it and made some very bad mistakes on my own,” the “Ray Donovan” actor told The Christian Post. “And then I got a wake-up call: I know that God is real, and I know that our whole lives are only meaningful in relation to God. I'm very fortunate to have had that understanding in my life … I've had an extended career because of it.”
For Voight, faith today serves as the cornerstone of his identity, and it informs everything he does: "As Christians, we have the great guidance of Jesus and His help from above. That’s all real, and it’s what gives us hope to become our greater selves,” he said. "Our souls are pieces of God, pure God each one of our souls. Once we stand up to that and identify ourselves as that, our lives change."
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In the forthcoming film “Reagan,” Voight steps into the shoes of Viktor Petrovich, a former KGB agent whose life becomes intertwined with that of Ronald Reagan, played by Dennis Quaid.
Based on Paul Kengor’s 2007 book The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism, the film is narrated by Voight, who in the present day, recounts to a younger colleague Reagan’s early days in a small town to his Hollywood career and eventual global political influence.
“I knew he was the one who would bring us down, not with missiles or guns or even politics, but with something much greater … people give their lives for one another, for the freedom to live their lives as they choose and for God. We took that away. The Crusader gave it back to them,” Petrovich says of Reagan’s success in taking down the USSR.
Rated PG-13 for violent content and smoking, the first half of “Reagan” focuses on the young actor and Screen Actors Guild president as he battles against Communist influences within Hollywood unions. The second half of the film focuses on his presidential wins, marriages, de-escalation of the Cold War and surviving an assassination attempt.
In addition to Voight and Quaid, the film stars Penelope Ann Miller as Nancy Reagan, Mena Suvari as Jane Wyman, Lesley-Anne Down as Margaret Thatcher, David Henrie as a young Reagan and Kevin Dillon as Jack Warner. The film is directed by Sean McNamara, known for "Soul Surfer" and "The Miracle Season."
Voight, who spent some time in Russia in the 1990s, described Petrovich as a man with deep convictions and a love for his country’s true spirit, one that he sees reflected in its great artists and thinkers rather than in the oppressive ideology of Communism.
"I feel that I understand this man from the inside. I love the Russian people and the Russian artists,” he said. “Stanislavski, Chekhov — they're a part of the Russian spirit, the true motherland. In the film, I say, 'Communism is not the motherland.' To me, that's what I believe. The Russian greatness lies in its artists, its composers, not in the Soviet regime."
Voight stressed that Communism is a “disaster” and warned that the same dangerous ideology permeating Soviet Russia is also now infiltrating the United States.
“The Russian people suffered under it, and now we’re being attacked by those same values. Ronald Reagan helped them survive it. He got rid of the Soviet Union, got rid of Communism in that country. What a blessing for those people,” he said.
"They were so depressed and so injured by that system, and he gave them hope and new life,” he added. “But now we’re burdened with it, somehow being attacked by what was the agenda of the KGB. It’s taken root in our country, and we have to stand up and return to the proper principles. Maybe that’s what Ronald Reagan reminds us of.”
Voight noted that Reagan's approach to handling oppressive ideologies and opponents was rooted in his unwavering faith, which was instilled in him as a young child by his mother, Nelle, and his childhood pastor. In one scene, a pastor (Kevin Sorbo) tells a young Reagan, “Anybody can be God's people, so long as they choose Him.”
"What he had was basically the words of his mother when he was a child: staying in touch with God and believing in the principles of our founding. That’s what served him all his life, so he was able to see right from wrong,” he said.
Screenwriter Howard Klausner told CP he wanted the script to highlight Reagan’s quest for purpose, a journey that took him from small-town Illinois to Hollywood and eventually to the White House.
“Reagan’s faith was integral from childhood on,” Klausner explained. “It wasn’t just politically expedient. The man believed in the Lord, and that belief guided him throughout his life. To leave that out wouldn’t be true to who he was.”
“Reagan lived so many lives,” Klausner said. “He was an actor, a sports announcer, a union president, and it wasn’t until he was shot that he truly understood his purpose. That’s the spine of the movie — his search for meaning.”
The secret to Reagan’s success, Klausner said, was “love,” adding: “He loved his family. He loved people, whether they agreed with him or not. He loved the United States. He loved God. And I think that is what is so desperately missing in this political dialog and what we're living in right now.”
“Reagan” releases exclusively in theaters nationwide on Aug. 30, 2024. For more information, visit www.reagan.movie.
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected]
