Bill Pullman As President Thomas J. Whitmore (Independence Day, 1996)
Once in a while, a movie comes along that provides a seismic shift in filmmaking – and Independence Day was one such film. Its depiction of a full-scale global alien invasion, and the attempts of the human race to fight back, quickly became iconic in a way that has continued to influence disaster films ever since.
While the story and its special effects sequences have resonated over the decades, the characterization in the film tended more toward the two-dimensional – and the role of President Whitmore was no exception. However, in the final analysis, it is the stereotypical nature of the man that makes it a great Presidential performance.
Independence Day is among the ultimate male wish fulfilment films. Facing the threat of total annihilation, non-military, untrained men (such as Randy Quaid’s Russell Casse, and Jeff Goldblum’s David Levinson) get to literally save the world, alongside hot-shot heroes, like Will Smith’s Captain Steve Hiller. When it comes to the President, we see wish fulfilment, too, as Thomas Whitmore reveals himself to be exactly the kind of warm-hearted, patriarchal figure everyone secretly wishes was in The White House at a time of crisis.
He is a kind, loving husband and father, who is unafraid to make the tough decisions when the time comes. He is a military man, who understands the basic desires of the average American citizen, and works to protect their right to achieve them. When it comes down to the moment of truth, he is a skilled leader – giving one of the best, most stirring speeches in film, and heading up a squadron as they fly into battle.
