In “Man of the Year,” Robin Williams plays Tom Dobbs, a Jon Stewart-esque comedian who runs for president. But Dobbs is none too pleased by the punch line: He wins. The fictional Dobbs isn’t the only celebrity to attract election buzz. Here are three pop culture favorites who have been pushed toward public service.
George Clooney
Clooney–who has made several politically charged films, including “Syriana” and “Good Night, and Good Luck”–has emerged as a passionate voice in global policy, most recently speaking out against the conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan.
But the debonair star danced around reporter’s questions that he might run for office during a recent appearance with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in California, according to the AP.
When reporters told him that fans wanted him in office, Clooney reportedly replied: “Believe me, you don’t want me in politics.” He also suggested fans wearing T-shirts promoting him for president were “probably kidding.”
Oprah Winfrey
It looked like the Queen of All Media was about to slap a ‘suit on one persistent fan who wants her to run for president.
After years of hosting a Web site with a campaign song and photo of Oprah, Patrick Crowe of Kansas City received a letter from her lawyers in August telling him to remove the photo from the site. But during a September interview with the AP, the “O” suggested that her attorneys overreacted.
“I feel flattered by it,” Winfrey said of Crowe’s campaign. “My lawyers overreacted, I think, by sending him a cease-and-desist order, because it really is a flattering thing.”
Ben Affleck
Did Affleck consider going from celebrity to senator? It definitely was the dream of politicos who talked to The Washington Post’s “Reliable Source” last year. The column sourced Virginia Democrats who desperately wanted the actor to run for Senate in order to slow down the success of Republican incumbent Sen. George Allen.
Affleck spokesman Ken Sunshine commented to The Washington Post that rumors of a run were “baseless,” though he reportedly added: “He would be a superb candidate for public office in the future. Right now, he’s very busy directing his first feature movie for Disney, ‘Gone, Baby, Gone.’ “
