3. James K. Polk
James K. Polk is the least-known most-consequential president in American history, and for just that reason he deserves a movie. The president who acquired the most land for the United States? That’d be Polk. Without his administration many Americans reading this might still be under British or Mexican rule, or even in some independent country of California. If you’re from the west, and proud to be an American, you owe Polk your gratitude.
He’s also regarded as the first dark-horse candidate to win the presidency. He had just come off two defeats in the race for governor of Tennessee, and went into the Democratic convention hoping to merely secure a vide-presidential nomination. Through some clever maneuvering by his shrewd political team he was able to snag the nomination and eventually the presidency. Audiences love an underdog, and watching 19th century political teams work their magic would be highly entertaining.
Polk put heavy pressure on the British to resolve the dispute over the Oregon territory border, and that pressure almost led to another war between the two countries. The brink of war is always a highly dramatic time, and it would be excellent for the Polk film.
Polk’s casting isn’t easy, but an excellent choice would be Jason Isaacs. The resemblance is extremely close, and Isaacs’ character Lucius Malfoy had a very 19th century nobel feel about him. With an American accent and a similar, but less evil, manner Isaacs would be very believable as Polk.
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