By Robin Williams will be playing Dwight D. Eisenhower — aka D.D. Smalls — in Lee Daniels’ The Butler, a true story based on the life of Eugene Allen, who worked as a servant in the White House for over thirty years and across several administrations . The film is already boasting a stellar cast, with Forrest Whitaker slated to play Allen, along with co-stars James Marsden, John Cusack, Jane Fonda, Melissa Leo, Alan Rickman, Alex Pettyfer and Oprah Winfrey.
So Williams will be acting in a supporting role, but he’s proven himself capable of being a serious actor on several occasions and I’m sure he’ll bring nothing but his A-game to the production. Of course, if they really wanted to save money, they could just recast him as Theodore Roosevelt and splice in his scenes from A Night at the Museum. Then again, Eugene Allen didn’t begin working at the White House until 1952, so they’d have to toss in some time travel shenanigans as well. Smells like a winner to me!
Side note: To my knowledge, no one has ever referred to Dwight D. Eisenhower as D.D. Smalls, but it sounds like it could have totally stuck.
[via First Showing]