Matheson on his preparation for playing President Reagan: (3:05-3:45)

“Nancy was the center of his universe. That and his passion for America and his belief that he had a vision for the country and that the country needed him. He wanted to help his country in its time of need.

“He was very shy and he was very private. He didn’t socialize much. They didn’t hang out with a lot of different people. From my research, a lot of the things that I had thought about him because of his politics, I learned weren’t true, and the more I learned about him the more I fell in love with the character, which is what you need to do as an actor.”

Director Rod Lurie on directing Tim Matheson in his role as Reagan (15:28-16:00)

“Tim threw himself so completely into becoming Reagan that when you see the film there are moments where it’s semi-indistinguishable between the real Reagan and Tim. There are a few moments that it’s almost eerie.  

“Tim nailed how Ronald Reagan breathed. Reagan kind of breathed a certain way that he would interrupt his sentences with a breath as he was talking and Tim caught that and recognized that.”