Democrats Are Bad Actors

Preparing for a role in the 1976 thriller Marathon Man in which his character hadn’t slept for three days, method actor Dustin Hoffman . . . didn’t sleep for three days. Laurence Olivier, Hoffman’s co-star in the film and a classically trained actor, had a different approach. “My dear boy,” the legendary performer Olivier said, “why don’t you try acting?”

It’s a good story — too good, according to Hoffman. The performative excesses of elected Democrats have nonetheless reminded me of it. Uncertain and divided after Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 election and Republicans’ gaining the Senate and (narrowly) holding the House, the party is casting about for a workable political strategy. But these wannabe Hoffmans won’t find it in scenery-chewing, for one simple reason: They’re bad actors.

About the Author

Jack Butler

Jack Butler is a former submissions editor at National Review.

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Preparing for a role in the 1976 thriller Marathon Man in which his character hadn’t slept for three days, method actor Dustin Hoffman . . . didn’t sleep for three days. Laurence Olivier, Hoffman’s co-star in the film and a classically trained actor, had a different approach. “My dear boy,” the legendary performer Olivier said, “why don’t you try acting?”

It’s a good story — too good, according to Hoffman. The performative excesses of elected Democrats have nonetheless reminded me of it. Uncertain and divided after Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 election and Republicans’ gaining the Senate and (narrowly) holding the House, the party is casting about for a workable political strategy. But these wannabe Hoffmans won’t find it in scenery-chewing, for one simple reason: They’re bad actors.