'Reagan' hits theaters after denouncing Meta's censorship attempt

The film "Reagan" is just days away from opening in theaters nationwide. Directed by Sean McNamara and starring Dennis Quaid as the 40th president of the United States, the feature film produced by ShowBiz Direct will finally land on the big screen this Friday, August 30.

The film, based on Paul Kengor's book "The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism" published in 2006, will tell the story of the former president of the United States, from his childhood until he occupied the Oval Office. But it will have an unexpected twist, as the main plot will link Reagan "closely to the Cold War through Viktor Petrovich, a former KGB agent," producers told Breitbart.

Thus, Petrovich, played by Jon Voight, will be the one to narrate this part of the Reagan story to Andrei Novikov, a young, up-and-coming Russian politician brought to life by Alexey Sparrow.

"Reagan" has been in production for years. Announced in 2010, the feature film began shooting ten years later with a $25 million budget and a release date that was originally going to be in 2021 but had to be postponed for three years due to various factors such as the pandemic.

What few know is that Dennis Quaid was on the verge of turning down the role of Ronald Reagan. As he told the especialized web ScreenRant "I didn't say yes, but I didn't say no."

It wasn't until he visited the Reagan Ranch, where he came across some of the former president's belongings intact until he decided to give the feature a chance and accept the role. "I could really feel him there, and that was really the beginning of it. I had a year to prepare, and then there was Penelope here who basically channeled Nancy Reagan, and so it made it my job so much easier," he detailed.

Meta censured the film for "trying to influence the 2024 election"

Promotion of the film, which features songs performed by Bob Dylan, Gene Simmons and Clint Black, wasn't easy, either.

As both Quaid and the "Reagan" marketing team reported to Fox News Digital, Meta prevented ShowBiz Direct from promoting the feature film on its social networks.

It did so by denying them from publishing a paid advertisement that included the photo of Quaid characterized as Ronald Reagan in which they promoted the film. In addition, Facebook suspended the film's official account at least twice for clips posted by the star talking about the film in different media.

As Quaid explained, Facebook tried to justify this censorship by claiming that the publication "mentions politicians or is about sensitive issues that could influence public opinion, how people vote and may impact the outcome of an election or pending legislation."

However, the performer criticized that those responsible for removing this post made the decision without even seeing the content of the publication:

"The one thing I would say was Facebook, before they did censor materials relating to it, is that they did it without even seeing it. So, we’ll offer them a private screening if they want."Dennis Quaid, star of 'Reagan.'

So why did Facebook censor and remove the film's promotional page? According to the star it did so by relying on an "automated" system.

"This happened several times, actually, and we were suspended two days in a row. The last time I heard, Reagan hasn’t been on the ballot in 40 years and, not only that, he’s not even eligible to run because he served two terms," assured Dennis Quaid who is now celebrating the imminent arrival of "Reagan" on the big screen.