A president who can kickstart the U.S. economy may be favored by American voters this election season, but if left to movie fans voting in an online poll, a president who can kick butt would do better in the White House.
Harrison Ford, who played a president fighting airplane hijackers in 1997’s “Air Force One” topped a list of fictional movie presidents people would most like to lead the U.S., according to a poll released on Thursday by AOL’s Moviefone.com Web site.
Ford took 24 percent of the votes versus 16 percent for No. 2 Morgan Freeman, playing a president who must save mankind from a comet heading for Earth in “Deep Impact” (1998).
“It seems everybody is looking for a commander-in-chief who can come in and take command,” said Moviefone editor-in-chief Scott Robson. “Our readers voted with their hearts at a time when you have the economy going down the tubes, but in an ideal world it would be great to have a president who can kick some ass.”
Freeman is one of a handful of African-Americans to play a president onscreen, putting Hollywood well ahead of Barack Obama’s historic 2008 White House bid.
“I don’t know if Obama can say Morgan Freeman paved the way, but it hasn’t hurt,” said Robson.
Michael Douglas, who played a widowed president looking for love in “The American President” (1995), was No. 3 with 15 percent of votes and Bill Pullman, who thwarted aliens in “Independence Day” (1996), followed with 12 percent.
The poll ran on Moviefone.com from Sept. 23-Oct. 21 and attracted more than 1.1 million votes.
The top 10 movie presidents who Americans would vote into office in real life according to the poll are:
1. Harrison Ford - “Air Force One” (1997)2. Morgan Freeman - “Deep Impact” (1998)3. Michael Douglas - “The American President (1995)4. Bill Pullman - ”Independence Day“ (1996)5. Kevin Kline - ”Dave“ (1993)6. Dennis Quaid - ”American Dreamz“ (2006)7. Bruce Greenwood - ”National Treasure: Book of Secrets“ (2003)8. James Cromwell - ”The Sum of All Fears (2002)9. Jack Nicholson - “Mars Attacks” (1996)10. Jeff Bridges - “The Contender” (2000)