View source for Nixon (film)

{{short description|1995 film by Oliver Stone}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Nixon
| image          = Nixonmovieposter.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| alt            = A face half hidden in shadows, his hand on his chin. "Nixon" is written in red letters in the center of the poster.
| director       = [[Oliver Stone]]
| producer       = [[Clayton Townsend]]<br />Oliver Stone <br />[[Andrew G. Vajna]]
| writer         = [[Stephen J. Rivele]]<br />[[Christopher Wilkinson]]<br />Oliver Stone
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Anthony Hopkins]]
* [[Joan Allen]]
* [[Powers Boothe]]
* [[Ed Harris]]
* [[Bob Hoskins]]
* [[E. G. Marshall]]
* [[David Paymer]]
* [[David Hyde Pierce]]
* [[Paul Sorvino]]
* [[Mary Steenburgen]]
* [[J. T. Walsh]]
* [[James Woods]]
}}
| music          = [[John Williams]]
| cinematography = [[Robert Richardson (cinematographer)|Robert Richardson]]
| editing        = [[Hank Corwin]]<br />[[Brian Berdan]]
| studio         = [[Hollywood Pictures]]<br />[[Cinergi Pictures]]<br />Illusion Entertainment Group
| distributor    = [[Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures|Buena Vista Pictures Distribution]] (North America/South America/Germany/Japan)<br />[[Cinergi Pictures|Cinergi Productions]] (International)
| released       = {{Film date|1995|12|22}}
| runtime        = 192 minutes<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/nixon-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0yoti0ndc | title=Nixon | publisher=[[British Board of Film Classification]]}}</ref>
| country        = United States
| language       = English<br />Chinese<br />Russian
| budget         = $44&nbsp;million<ref name="mojo" />
| gross          = $13.7&nbsp;million (US/Canada)<ref name="mojo"/>
}}
'''''Nixon''''' is a 1995 American [[Epic film|epic]] [[historical drama|historical]] [[drama (film and television)|drama film]] directed by [[Oliver Stone]], produced by Stone, Clayton Townsend, and [[Andrew G. Vajna]], and written by Stone, [[Christopher Wilkinson]], and [[Stephen J. Rivele]], with significant contributions from "project consultants" Christopher Scheer and Robert Scheer. The film tells the story of the political and personal life of former U.S. President [[Richard Nixon]], played by [[Anthony Hopkins]].

The film portrays Nixon as a complex and in many respects admirable, albeit deeply flawed, person. ''Nixon'' begins with a disclaimer that the film is "an attempt to understand the truth ... based on numerous public sources and on an incomplete historical record". The cast also includes [[Joan Allen]], [[Annabeth Gish]], [[Marley Shelton]], [[Bai Ling]], [[Powers Boothe]], [[J. T. Walsh]], [[E. G. Marshall]], [[Sam Waterston]], [[James Woods]], [[Paul Sorvino]], [[Bob Hoskins]], [[Larry Hagman]], [[Ed Harris]] and [[David Hyde Pierce]], plus archival appearances from political figures such as President [[Bill Clinton]] in television footage from the Nixon funeral service.

The film received generally favorable reviews from critics, with Hopkins' performance receiving particular praise. Despite this, the film grossed only $13.6&nbsp;million domestically against a $44&nbsp;million budget, making it one of the biggest [[box-office bomb]]s of 1995. The film was nominated for four [[68th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]: [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] (Anthony Hopkins), [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]] (Joan Allen), [[Academy Award for Best Original Score|Best Original Score]] (John Williams) and [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]. This was Stone's second of three films about the presidents of the United States, after ''[[JFK (film)|JFK]]'', which was about the [[assassination of John F. Kennedy]], and ''[[W. (film)|W.]]'', which was about [[George W. Bush]].

==Plot==
In 1972, the [[White House Plumbers]] break into [[Watergate complex|The Watergate]] and are subsequently arrested. Eighteen months later in December 1973, [[Richard Nixon]]'s Chief of Staff, [[Alexander Haig]], brings Nixon audio tapes for Nixon to listen to. The two men discuss the [[Watergate scandal]] and the resulting chaos. After discussing the death of [[J. Edgar Hoover]], Nixon uses profanity when discussing [[John Dean]], [[James W. McCord Jr.|James McCord]], and others involved in Watergate. As Haig turns to leave, Nixon asks Haig why he has not been given a pistol to commit suicide like an honorable soldier.

A majority of the movie is told through flashbacks of Nixon's tapes. Nixon starts the taping system, which triggers memories that begin a series of flashbacks within the film. The first begins on June 23, 1972, about one week after the break-in, during a meeting with [[H. R. Haldeman]], [[John Ehrlichman]] and Dean. Ehrlichman and Dean leave, and Nixon speaks the "[[Watergate scandal#"Smoking Gun" tape|smoking gun]]" tape to Haldeman.

[[Henry Kissinger]] figures prominently in the film, beginning as a respected professor and later as [[National Security Adviser]] and [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]. Throughout the film, there is a battle with Nixon and his staff over who Kissinger actually is—is he a leaker who only cares about his reputation in the press, or is he a loyal subject who follows the president's orders? Although many cabinet members blame Kissinger for the leaks, Nixon cannot turn his back on him.

While at the height of his political career, Nixon thinks back to childhood and how his parents raised him and his brothers. Two of his brothers died of tuberculosis at a young age and this deeply impacted the president. The film covers most aspects of Nixon's life and political career and implies that he and his [[Pat Nixon|wife]] abused [[Alcoholic beverages|alcohol]] and [[Prescription drug|prescription medications]]. Nixon's health problems, including his bout of [[phlebitis]] and [[pneumonia]] during the Watergate crisis, are also shown; his heavy use of medications is sometimes attributed to these.

The film hints at some kind of responsibility, real or imagined, that Nixon felt towards the [[John F. Kennedy]] [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassination]] through references to the [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]], the implication being that the mechanisms set into place for the invasion by Nixon during his 8-year term as [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]]'s vice president spiraled out of control to culminate in Kennedy's assassination and eventually Watergate.

The film ends with [[Richard Nixon's resignation speech|Nixon's resignation]] and departure from the lawn of the White House on the helicopter, [[Army One]]. Real-life footage of [[Death and state funeral of Richard Nixon|Nixon's state funeral]] in [[Yorba Linda, California]] plays out over the extended end credits, and all living ex-presidents at the time—[[Gerald Ford]], [[Jimmy Carter]], [[Ronald Reagan]], and [[George H. W. Bush]]—as well as then-president [[Bill Clinton]], are shown in attendance.

==Cast==
{{Multiple image
| total_width       = 360
| image1            = ANTHONY HOPKINS White house correspondents dinner Wash. D.C. 1996 (5113175432).jpg
| image2            = Richard Nixon presidential portrait (1).jpg
| footer            = [[Anthony Hopkins]] (left) plays President [[Richard Nixon]]
}}

===First family===
* [[Anthony Hopkins]] as [[Richard Nixon]]
* [[Joan Allen]] as [[Pat Nixon]]
* [[Annabeth Gish]] as [[Julie Nixon Eisenhower]]
* [[Marley Shelton]] as [[Tricia Nixon Cox]]

===White House staff and cabinet===
* [[James Woods]] as [[H. R. Haldeman]], the Chief of Staff and Nixon's closest advisor. Woods talked Stone into giving him the part, a role that the director had planned to offer Ed Harris.<ref name="hamburg" />
* [[J. T. Walsh]] as [[John Ehrlichman]], Domestic Affairs Advisor, he is the first to notice the president's paranoia and thinks Nixon is breaking the law.
* [[Paul Sorvino]] as [[Henry Kissinger]], National Security Advisor and later Secretary of State, he is rumored to be self-serving and a leaker.
* [[Powers Boothe]] as General [[Alexander Haig]], a U.S. Army General who served under Henry Kissinger as Deputy National Security Advisor and later the president's White House Chief of Staff during the Watergate scandal.
* [[E. G. Marshall]] as [[John N. Mitchell]], Nixon's longtime friend and later Attorney General, whom he refers to as "family". He is the first to be set up to take the fall for Watergate.
* [[David Paymer]] as [[Ron Ziegler]], White House Press Secretary that Nixon pushes around, both literally and figuratively.
* [[David Hyde Pierce]] as [[John Dean]], White House Counsel and the first to testify in front of Congress on Watergate and the cover up.
* [[Kevin Dunn]] as [[Charles Colson]], White House Counsel and later Director of Public Liaison, also a close advisor to Nixon.
* [[Saul Rubinek]] as [[Herbert G. Klein]], Nixon's campaign press secretary in 1960 and 1962; then the Director of Communications.
* [[Fyvush Finkel]] as [[Murray Chotiner]], one of Nixon's mentors and chairman of his campaigns in 1960, 1962, 1968, and 1972.
* [[Tony Plana]] as [[Manolo Sanchez (Nixon staff member)|Manolo Sanchez]], Nixon's valet and a trusted contact.
* [[James Karen]] as [[William P. Rogers]], Nixon's Secretary of State who urges Nixon not to bomb Cambodia. Nixon thinks he is weak and a leaker and excludes him on international meetings, deferring to Kissinger instead.
* [[Richard Fancy]] as [[Melvin Laird]], Secretary of Defense who concurs with Rogers to not bomb Cambodia.

===Nixon family===
* [[Mary Steenburgen]] as [[Hannah Milhous Nixon]], Richard's passive but strong [[Quakers|Quaker]] mother.
* [[Tony Goldwyn]] as Harold Nixon, Richard's brother who dies of tuberculosis.
* [[Tom Bower (actor)|Tom Bower]] as [[Francis A. Nixon|Francis Nixon]], Richard's overbearing and rough father.
* [[Sean Stone]] as [[Donald Nixon]], Richard's younger brother.
* Joshua Preston as Arthur Nixon
* [[Corey Carrier]] as adolescent Richard Nixon
* David Barry Gray as young adult Richard Nixon

===White House plumbers===
* [[Ed Harris]] as [[E. Howard Hunt]], a former CIA operative who was attached to the Bay of Pigs and becomes a White House "plumber". He starts to blackmail the administration and tells John Dean to get out while he can. 
* [[John Diehl]] as [[G. Gordon Liddy]]
* [[Robert Beltran]] as [[Frank Sturgis]]

===Other cast members===
* [[Bob Hoskins]] as [[J. Edgar Hoover]], director of the FBI.
* [[Brian Bedford]] as [[Clyde Tolson]], Hoover's partner and Deputy FBI Director.
* [[Madeline Kahn]] as [[Martha Beall Mitchell]], John Mitchell's gregarious wife who insists Dick Nixon was nothing but a crook and ruined her family name. In real life, Martha made several phone calls to reporters over Watergate and her husband.
* [[Edward Herrmann]] as [[Nelson Rockefeller]], a wealthy presidential candidate in 1964. He warns Nixon of being too extreme in his ideology. Though not depicted in the movie, Rockefeller would become [[Gerald Ford]]'s Vice President.
* [[Dan Hedaya]] as Trini Cardoza, based upon [[Bebe Rebozo]], close advisor to Nixon.
* [[Bridgette Wilson]] as Sandy
* [[Ric Young]] as [[Mao Zedong]], the ruler of Communist China.
* [[Bai Ling]] as Mao's interpreter
* [[Boris Sichkin]] as [[Leonid Brezhnev]], a Soviet leader.
* [[Sam Waterston]] as [[Richard Helms]] (scenes present only in director's cut), the Director of the CIA who knows more about Nixon than Nixon feels comfortable knowing. The two of them go back to the Bay of Pigs fiasco.
* [[Joanna Going]] as young student
* [[Tony Lo Bianco]] as [[John Roselli|Johnny Roselli]], a gangster Nixon knew in Cuba who was attached to the Castro assassination attempt.
* [[George Plimpton]] as the President's lawyer.
* [[Larry Hagman]] as "Jack Jones" -  Unlike some other characters in the film who represent actual people, Jack Jones, a billionaire investment banker and real estate tycoon, is a composite character,<ref name="Fuchs">{{cite news|last=Fuchs|first=Cindy|title=''Nixon''|work=[[Philadelphia City Paper]]|date=December 28, 1995 – January 4, 1996|url=http://www.citypaper.net/articles/122895/article023.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081022091524/http://www.citypaper.net/articles/122895/article023.shtml|archive-date=October 22, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> who is emblematic of "big business" in general. The character may be a reference to Nixon's meetings with [[Clint Murchison Sr.]], although he also illuminates Nixon's relationships with [[Howard Hughes]], [[H. L. Hunt]] and other entrepreneurs.<ref name="Sharrett">{{cite news|last=Sharrett|first=Christopher|title=''Nixon''|work=[[Cineaste (magazine)|Cineaste]]|date=Winter 1996|url=http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/Nixon.html|access-date=April 16, 2009|archive-date=April 11, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411003431/http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/Nixon.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Michael Chiklis]] as the TV director
* [[Jack Wallace (actor)|Jack Wallace]] as the football coach
* [[John C. McGinley]] as the salesmen in the Dept. of Labor training film
* [[James Pickens Jr.]] as an audience agitator

==Production==
===Origins===
Eric Hamburg, former speechwriter and staff member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, got the idea of a film about [[Richard Nixon]] after having dinner with [[Oliver Stone]].<ref name="hamburg"/> Originally, Stone had been developing two projects – the musical ''[[Evita (1996 film)|Evita]]'' and a movie about [[Panama]]nian dictator [[Manuel Noriega]]. When neither was made, Stone turned his attention to a biopic about Nixon.<ref name= "mcguire">{{cite news|last1=McGuire|first1=Stryker|last2=Ansen|first2=David| title = Hollywood's Most Controversial Director Oliver Stone Takes on Our Most Controversial President Richard Nixon|work=[[Newsweek]]|date=December 11, 1995}}</ref> The former President's death on April 22, 1994, was also a key factor in Stone's decision to make a Nixon film. He [[Pitch (filmmaking)|pitched]] the film to [[Warner Bros.]], but, according to Stone, they saw it, "as a bunch of unattractive older white men sitting around in suits, with a lot of dialogue and not enough action".<ref name= "mcguire"/>

In 1993, Hamburg mentioned the idea of a Nixon film to writer Stephen J. Rivele with the concept being that they would incorporate all of the politician's misdeeds, both known and speculative.<ref name= "hamburg"/> Rivele liked the idea and had previously thought about writing a play exploring the same themes. Hamburg encouraged Rivele to write a film instead and with his screenwriting partner, Christopher Wilkinson, they wrote a treatment in November 1993.<ref name= "hamburg"/> They conceived of a concept referred to as "the Beast", which Wilkinson describes as "a headless monster that lurches through postwar history," a metaphor for a system of dark forces that resulted in the assassinations of [[John F. Kennedy]], [[Robert F. Kennedy]], and [[Martin Luther King Jr.]], the [[Vietnam War]], and helped Nixon's rise to power and his fall from it as well.<ref name= "weinraub">{{cite news
| last = Weinraub
| first = Bernard
| author-link = Bernard Weinraub
| title = Professor Stone Resumes His Presidential Research
| work = [[New York Times]]
| date = December 17, 1995
| url = https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/17/movies/film-professor-stone-resumes-his-presidential-research.html
| access-date = February 26, 2021
| archive-date = August 3, 2016
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160803053311/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/17/movies/film-professor-stone-resumes-his-presidential-research.html
| url-status = live
}}</ref> Stone said in an interview that Nixon realizes that "the Beast" "is more powerful than he is. We can't get into it that much, but we hint at it so many times—the military-industrial complex, the forces of money".<ref name= "smith">{{cite news
| last = Smith
| first = Gavin
| title = The Dark Side
| work = [[Sight and Sound]]
| date = March 1995
}}</ref> In another interview, the director elaborates,
{{blockquote|I see the Beast in its essence as a System ... which grinds the individual down ... it's a System of checks and balances that drives itself off: 1) the power of money and markets; 2) State power, Government power; 3) corporate power, which is probably greater than state power; 4) the political process, or election through money, which is therefore in tow to the System; and 5) the media, which mostly protects the status quo and their ownership's interests.<ref name= "carnes">{{cite news
| last = Carnes
| first = Mark C
| title = Past Imperfect: History According to the Movies
| work = Cineaste
| volume = XXII
| issue = 4
| date = Fall 1996
| url = http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/pastimperfect.html
| access-date = 2009-03-18
| archive-date = 2017-10-16
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171016145737/http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/pastimperfect.html
| url-status = live
}}</ref>}} It was this concept that convinced Stone to make ''Nixon'' and he told Hamburg to hire Rivele and Wilkinson. Stone commissioned the first draft of the film's screenplay in the fall of 1993.<ref name= "hamburg"/> Rivele and Wilkinson delivered the first draft of their script on June 17, 1994, the anniversary of the [[Watergate scandal]].<ref name= "hamburg"/> Stone loved the script but felt that the third act and the ending needed more work.<ref name= "hamburg"/> They wrote another draft and delivered it on August 9, the 20th anniversary of [[Resignation of Richard Nixon|Nixon's resignation]].<ref name= "hamburg"/>

===Pre-production===
Stone immersed himself in research with the help of Hamburg.<ref name= "mcguire"/> With Hamburg and actors Anthony Hopkins and James Woods, Stone flew to [[Washington, D.C.]], and interviewed the surviving members of Nixon's inner circle: lawyer [[Leonard Garment]] and Attorney General [[Elliot Richardson]]. He also interviewed [[Robert McNamara]], a former Secretary of Defense under the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. The director also hired [[Alexander Butterfield]], a key figure in the Watergate scandal who handled the flow of paper to the President, as a consultant to make sure that the Oval Office was realistically depicted,<ref name= "hamburg"/> former deputy White House counsel [[John Sears (political strategist)|John Sears]], and [[John Dean]], who made sure that every aspect of the script was accurate and wrote a few uncredited scenes for the film.<ref name= "hamburg"/> Butterfield also appears in a few scenes as a White House staffer. To research their roles, Powers Boothe, David Hyde Pierce and Paul Sorvino talked to their real-life counterparts, but J.T. Walsh decided not to contact [[John Ehrlichman]] because he had threatened to sue after reading an early version of the script and was not happy with how he was portrayed.<ref name= "mcguire"/> Hopkins watched a lot of documentary footage on Nixon. At night, he would go to sleep with the Nixon footage playing, letting it seep into his subconscious.<ref name= "weiskind">{{cite news
| last = Weiskind
| first = Ron
| title = Hopkins Takes Presidential Duties Seriously
| work = Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
| date = December 24, 1995
}}</ref> Hopkins said, "It's taking in all this information and if you're relaxed enough, it begins to take you over."<ref name= "weiskind" />

Stone originally had a three-picture deal with [[Regency Enterprises]] which included ''[[JFK (film)|JFK]]'', ''[[Heaven & Earth (1993 film)|Heaven and Earth]]'', and ''[[Natural Born Killers]]''. After the success of ''Killers'', Arnon Milchan, head of Regency, signed Stone for three more motion pictures.<ref name= "kit">{{cite news
| last = Kit
| first = Zorianna
| title = Stars Come Out for Hollywood Premiere
| newspaper = [[Toronto Sun]]
| date = October 29, 1995
}}</ref> Stone could make any film up to a budget of $42.5&nbsp;million.<ref name= "hamburg"/> When Stone told Milchan that he wanted to make ''Nixon'', Milchan, who was not keen on the idea, told the director that he would only give him $35&nbsp;million, thinking that this would cause Stone to abandon the project.<ref name= "hamburg"/><ref name= "kit"/> Stone took the project to Hungarian financier [[Andrew G. Vajna]] who had a co-financing deal with [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]].<ref name= "hamburg"/> Vajna's company, [[Cinergi Pictures]], were willing to finance the $38&nbsp;million film. This angered Milchan who claimed that ''Nixon'' was his film because of his three-picture deal with Stone and he threatened to sue. He withdrew after Stone paid him an undisclosed amount.<ref name= "kit"/> Stone was finalizing the film's budget a week before shooting was to begin.<ref name= "mcguire"/> He made a deal with Cinergi and [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]]'s [[Hollywood Pictures]] in order to supply the $43&nbsp;million budget.<ref name= "mcguire"/> To cut costs, Stone leased the White House sets from [[Rob Reiner]]'s film ''[[The American President]]''.<ref name= "mcguire"/>

===Casting===
Hopkins was not considered a natural choice for the role, with British film critic [[Barry Norman]] telling Hopkins it was like "casting [[Paul Newman]] as [[Harold Macmillan]]". While Stone had wanted to cast Hopkins based on his recent performances in ''[[The Remains of the Day (film)|The Remains of the Day]]'' and ''[[Shadowlands (1993 film)|Shadowlands]]'', Hopkins took some time before accepting the role, noting the difficulties in a British actor replicating American speech patterns. Stone reassured Hopkins, telling him that he wanted him for the role and that being a former [[alcoholic]] and being [[Welsh people|Welsh]] meant there was "something dark" about him, that he was an "outsider".<ref>{{cite web |title=Anthony Hopkins talks to Barry Norman about Nixon |url=https://youtube/-j5lOZevLzs |website=Youtube |access-date=31 August 2025}}</ref> In a later interview Stone said, "The isolation of Tony is what struck me. The loneliness. I felt that was the quality that always marked Nixon."<ref name= "mcguire"/> When the actor met the director he got the impression that Stone was "one of the great bad boys of American pop culture, and I might be a fool to walk away."<ref name= "wilner">{{cite news | last = Wilner | first = Norman | title = Richard Nixon Gets Stoned | work = [[Toronto Star]] | date = December 15, 1995 }}</ref> Ultimately, Hopkins was convinced to take on the role and "impersonate the soul of Nixon were the scenes in the film when he talks about his mother and father. That affected me."<ref name= "carr">{{cite news | last = Carr | first = Jay | title = Perfectly Clear | work = [[Boston Globe]] | date = December 17, 1995 }}</ref> Hopkins wore a hair piece and false teeth "to hint at a physical resemblance to Nixon".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Weinraub|first1=Bernard|title=Stone's Nixon Is a Blend Of Demonic And Tragic|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/30/movies/stone-s-nixon-is-a-blend-of-demonic-and-tragic.html|access-date=May 7, 2018|work=New York Times|date=May 30, 1995|language=en|archive-date=May 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502220150/https://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/30/movies/stone-s-nixon-is-a-blend-of-demonic-and-tragic.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The studio did not like Stone's choice to play Nixon and wanted [[Tom Hanks]] or [[Jack Nicholson]] – two of Stone's original choices. The director also considered [[Gene Hackman]], [[Robin Williams]], [[Gary Oldman]] and [[Tommy Lee Jones]]. Stone met with [[Warren Beatty]] but Beatty declined as he felt that "Nixon was not treated compassionately".<ref name= "hamburg">{{cite news | last = Hamburg | first = Eric | title = JFK, Nixon, Oliver Stone & Me | publisher = Public Affairs | year = 2002 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/10/warren-beatty-interview|title=Six Decades In, Warren Beatty Is Still Seducing Hollywood|date=October 6, 2016|magazine=Vanity Fair}}</ref> When Beatty was thinking about doing the film, he insisted on doing a reading of the script with an actress and [[Joan Allen]] was flown in from [[New York City]]. Afterwards, Beatty told Stone that he had found his Pat Nixon.<ref name= "hamburg"/>

===Principal photography===
The film began shooting on May 1, 1995, but there was a week of pre-shooting at the end of April to film scenes that would be used as part of a mock documentary about Nixon's career.<ref name= "hamburg"/> Early on during principal photography, Hopkins was intimidated by the amount of dialogue he had to learn, that was being added and changed all the time<ref name= "weinraub"/> as he recalled, "There were moments when I wanted to get out, when I wanted to just do a nice ''[[Knots Landing]]'' or something."<ref name= "wilner"/> Sorvino told him that his accent was all wrong.<ref name= "mcguire"/> Sorvino claims he told Hopkins that he thought "there was room for improvement" and that he would be willing to help him.<ref name= "weiskind"/> Woods says that Sorvino told Hopkins that he was "doing the whole thing wrong" and that he was an "expert" who could help him.<ref name= "weiskind"/> Woods recalls that Sorvino took Hopkins to lunch and then he quit that afternoon.<ref name= "weiskind"/> Hopkins told Stone that he wanted to quit the production but the director managed to convince him to stay.<ref name= "mcguire"/><ref name= "weiskind"/> According to the actors, this was all good-natured joking. Woods said, "I'd always tell him how great he was in ''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]''. I'd call him Lady Perkins all the time instead of Sir Anthony Hopkins."<ref name= "weiskind"/>

In Spring of 1994, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine reported that an early draft of the screenplay linked Nixon to the assassination of President [[John F. Kennedy]].<ref name= "wilner"/> The facts contained in the script were based on research from various sources, including documents, transcripts and hours of footage from the Nixon White House. Dean said about the film's accuracy: "In the larger picture, it reflected accurately what happened."<ref name= "weinraub"/> Stone addressed the criticism of fictional material in the film, saying, "The material we invented was not done haphazardly or whimsically, it was based on research and interpretation."<ref name= "carnes"/> [[John H. Taylor (bishop)|John Taylor]], head of the Nixon Presidential Library, leaked a copy of the script to [[Richard Helms]], former Director of the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]], who threatened to sue the production.<ref name= "hamburg"/> In response, Stone cut out all scenes with Helms from the theatrical print and claimed that he did for "artistic reasons" only to reinstate this footage on the home video release.<ref name= "hamburg"/>

During the post-production phase, Stone had his editors in three different rooms with the scenes from the film revolving from one room to another, "depending on how successful they were".<ref name= "smith"/> If one editor wasn't successful with a scene then it went to another. Stone said that it was "the most intense post- I've ever done, even more intense than ''JFK''" because they were screening the film three times a week, making changes in 48–72 hours, rescreening the film and then making another 48 hours of changes.<ref name= "smith"/>

===Music===
{{Infobox album
| name         = Nixon: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
| type         = film
| artist       = [[John Williams]]
| cover        = 
| alt          = 
| released     = 1995
| recorded     = 
| venue        = 
| studio       = 
| genre        = [[Soundtrack]]
| length       = 47:23<ref name="FT">{{cite web|last=Clemmensen|first=Christian|title=Nixon (John Williams)|url=https://www.filmtracks.com/titles/nixon.html|website=Filmtracks|publisher=Filmtracks Publications|access-date=August 4, 2020|date=September 24, 1996|archive-date=September 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904182157/http://filmtracks.com/titles/nixon.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
| label        = 
| producer     = John Williams
| prev_title   = 
| prev_year    = 
| next_title   = 
| next_year    = 
}}

{{Music ratings
| rev1      = [[Allmusic]]<ref>{{cite web|last=Ankeny|first=Jason|title=Nixon [Original Soundtrack] - John Williams|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/nixon-original-soundtrack-mw0000182502|website=[[Allmusic]]|publisher=Netaktion LLC|access-date=August 4, 2020|archive-date=May 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210507180733/https://www.allmusic.com/album/nixon-original-soundtrack-mw0000182502|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}
| rev2      = Filmtracks<ref name="FT"/>
| rev2score = {{Rating|2|5}}
| rev3      = Movie Wave<ref>{{cite web|last=Southall|first=James|title=Williams: Nixon|url=http://www.movie-wave.net/titles/nixon.html|website=Movie Wave|access-date=August 4, 2020|archive-date=January 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116045833/http://www.movie-wave.net/titles/nixon.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev3score = {{Rating|4|5}}
}}
The score was composed by [[John Williams]], who previously worked with Stone on ''[[Born on the Fourth of July (film)|Born on the Fourth of July]]'' and ''[[JFK (film)|JFK]]''.

{{Track listing
| all_music = [[John Williams]], except where indicated
| headline = ''Nixon: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack''
| title1   = The 1960s: The Turbulent Years
| length1  = 5:01
| title2   = Main Title... The White House Gate
| length2  = 4:15
| title3   = Growing Up in Whittier
| length3  = 2:40
| title4   = The Ellsburg Break-in and Watergate
| length4  = 2:40
| title5   = Love Field: Dallas, November 1963
| length5  = 4:51
| title6   = Losing a Brother
| length6  = 3:17
| title7   = [[Battle Hymn of the Republic|The Battle Hymn of the Republic]]
| lyrics7  = [[Julia Ward Howe]]
| music7   = [[William Steffe]]
| length7  = 1:03
| title8   = Making a Comeback
| length8  = 2:20
| title9   = Track 2 and the Bay of Pigs
| length9  = 4:46
| title10  = The Miami Convention, 1968
| length10 = 3:18
| title11  = The Meeting with Mao
| length11 = 3:09
| title12  = "I Am That Sacrifice"
| length12 = 4:49
| title13  = The Farewell Scene
| length13 = 5:00
}}

==Reception==
===Box office===
In its opening weekend, ''Nixon'' grossed a total of $2.2&nbsp;million in 514 theaters in the United States and Canada. The film grossed a total of $13.6&nbsp;million in the United States and Canada, less than its $44&nbsp;million budget.<ref name= "mojo">{{cite web |title=''Nixon'' |work=[[Box Office Mojo]] |publisher=[[IMDb]] |date=September 26, 2007 |url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=nixon.htm |access-date=September 26, 2007 |archive-date=April 10, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070410060712/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=nixon.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Critical response===
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]] ''Nixon'' has a 76% approval rating, based reviews from 63 critics, with an average score of 6.8/10. The site's consensus states: "Much like its subject's time in office, ''Nixon'' might have ended sooner—but what remains is an engrossing, well-acted look at the rise and fall of a fascinating political figure."<ref name="tomatoes">{{cite web |title=Nixon (1995) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/nixon/ |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=2021-01-01 |archive-date=2020-12-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201206040231/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/nixon |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Metacritic]] gave the film a score of 66 based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/nixon|title=Nixon Reviews|website=[[Metacritic]]|access-date=2020-04-09|archive-date=2020-11-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125113746/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/nixon|url-status=live}}</ref> Audiences surveyed by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A+ to F.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |title= Cinemascore |url-status = dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181220122629/https://www.cinemascore.com/publicsearch/index/title/ |archive-date= 2018-12-20|access-date=2021-02-11}}</ref>

{{external media| float = right| video1 = [https://www.c-span.org/video/?69647-1/nixon-movie Panel discussion on ''Nixon'' with John W. Dean, Leonard Garment, Haynes Johnson, Robert Scheer, Helen Thomas, NPR film critic Pat Dowell, and American University School of Communication Dean Sanford Ungar, January 31, 1996], [[C-SPAN]]}}
Two days before the film was released in theaters, the [[Richard Nixon Library]] and birthplace in [[Yorba Linda, California]] issued a statement on behalf of the Nixon family, calling parts of the film "reprehensible" and that it was designed to "defame and degrade President and Mrs. Nixon's memories in the mind of the American public."<ref name= "weinraub2">{{cite news|last=Weinraub|first=Bernard|title=Nixon Family Assails Stone Film as Distortion|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=December 19, 1995
}}</ref> This statement was based on a published copy of the script.<ref name= "weinraub2"/> The statement also criticized Stone's depiction of Nixon's private life, that of his childhood, and his part in planning the assassination of [[Fidel Castro]]. Stone responded that his "purpose in making the film, ''Nixon'' was neither malicious nor defamatory", and was an attempt to gain "a fuller understanding of the life and career of Richard Nixon – the good and the bad, the triumphs and the tragedies, and the legacy he left his nation and the world."<ref name= "weinraub2"/>

Some critics took Stone to task for portraying Nixon as an [[alcoholic]], though Stone says that was based on information from books by [[Stephen Ambrose]], [[Fawn Brodie]], and [[Tom Wicker]].<ref name= "weinraub"/> Film critic [[Roger Ebert]] praised the film for how it took "on the resonance of classic tragedy. Tragedy requires the fall of a hero, and one of the achievements of ''Nixon'' is to show that greatness was within his reach."<ref>{{cite news
| last = Ebert
| first = Roger
| author-link = Roger Ebert
| title = ''Nixon''
| work = [[Chicago Sun-Times]]
| date = December 20, 1995
| url = https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/nixon-1995
| access-date = 2021-02-19
| archive-date = 2021-02-28
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210228004136/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/nixon-1995
| url-status = live
}}</ref> Ebert also placed the film on his list of the top ten films of the year. [[Janet Maslin]] from ''[[The New York Times]]'' praised Anthony Hopkins' performance and "his character's embattled outlook and stiff, hunched body language with amazing skill."<ref>{{cite news
| last = Maslin
| first = Janet
| author-link = Janet Maslin
| title = Stone's Embrace of a Despised President
| work = [[The New York Times]]
| date = December 20, 1995
| url = https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/20/movies/stone-s-embrace-of-a-despised-president.html
| access-date = 2021-02-19
| archive-date = 2018-06-26
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180626111735/https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/20/movies/stone-s-embrace-of-a-despised-president.html
| url-status = live
}}</ref>

Mick LaSalle in the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'', felt that "the problem here isn't accuracy. It's absurdity. Hopkins' exaggerated portrayal of Nixon is the linchpin of a film that in its conception and presentation consistently veers into camp".<ref>{{cite news|last=LaSalle|first=Mick|title=Oliver Stone's Absurd Take on ''Nixon''|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|date=July 12, 1996|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1996/07/12/DD59636.DTL|access-date=December 19, 2006|archive-date=September 30, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080930151907/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fc%2Fa%2F1996%2F07%2F12%2FDD59636.DTL|url-status=live}}</ref> Richard Corliss, in his review for ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', also had a problem with Hopkins' portrayal: "Hopkins, though, is a failure. He finds neither the timbre of Nixon's plummy baritone, with its wonderfully false attempts at intimacy, nor the stature of a career climber who, with raw hands, scaled the mountain and was still not high or big enough."<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Corliss|first=Richard|title=Death of a Salesman|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=December 18, 1995|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983860,00.html|access-date=2008-08-20|archive-date=2008-10-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007135525/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983860,00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Peter Travers]] of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' wrote: "It's gripping [[psychodrama]] — just don't confuse ''Nixon'' with history."<ref name="Travers">{{cite magazine|last=Travers|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Travers|date=December 20, 1995|title=Nixon|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/nixon-19951220|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=August 15, 2014|archive-date=August 19, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819101045/http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/nixon-19951220|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Accolades===
{|class="wikitable"
|-
! Award
! Category
! Recipients
! Result
! Ref.
|-
| rowspan=4| [[Academy Awards]] || [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] || [[Anthony Hopkins]] || {{nom}} || rowspan=4|<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1996|title= the 68th Academy Awards|website= [[Academy Awards|Oscars.org]]|date= 5 October 2014|accessdate= April 10, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]] || [[Joan Allen]] || {{nom}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]] || Stephen J. Rivele, [[Oliver Stone]] & [[Christopher Wilkinson]] || {{nom}} 
|-
| [[Academy Award for Original Music Score|Best Original Score]] || [[John Williams]] || {{nom}} 
|-
| [[BAFTA Award]] || [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role|Best Actress in a Supporting Role]] || Joan Allen || {{nom}} || <ref>{{cite web|url= https://awards.bafta.org/award/1996/film|title= film in 1996|website= awards.bafta.org|accessdate= April 10, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| [[Golden Globe Awards]] || [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama|Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama]] || Anthony Hopkins || {{nom}} || <ref>{{cite web|url= https://goldenglobes.com/film/nixon/|title= Nixon - Golden Globe Awards|website= [[Golden Globe Awards]]|accessdate= April 10, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan=3|[[Screen Actors Guild Awards]] || [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture|Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture]] || [[Joan Allen]], [[Brian Bedford]], [[Powers Boothe]], [[Kevin Dunn]], <br/> [[Fyvush Finkel]], [[Annabeth Gish]], [[Tony Goldwyn]], [[Larry Hagman]], <br/> [[Ed Harris]], [[Edward Herrmann]], [[Anthony Hopkins]], [[Bob Hoskins]], <br/> [[Madeline Kahn]], [[E. G. Marshall]], [[David Paymer]],  [[Paul Sorvino]], <br/> [[David Hyde Pierce]], [[Mary Steenburgen]], [[J. T. Walsh]], [[James Woods]] || {{nom}} || rowspan=3|<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/2nd-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards|title= The 2nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards|website= [[Screen Actors Guild Awards]]|accessdate= April 10, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role|Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role]] || Anthony Hopkins || {{nom}} 
|-
| [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role|Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role]] || Joan Allen || {{nom}}
|-
|}

''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' ranked ''Nixon'' No. 40 on their "50 Best Biopics Ever" list<ref name= "EWBiopics">{{cite magazine|title=50 Best Biopics Ever|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|url=http://www.ew.com/gallery/50-best-biopics-ever|access-date=February 17, 2016|archive-date=April 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160412091648/http://www.ew.com/gallery/50-best-biopics-ever|url-status=live}}</ref> and one of the 25 "Powerful Political Thrillers".<ref name= "ew25">{{cite magazine|title=Democracy 'n' Action: 25 Powerful Political Thrillers|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|url=http://www.ew.com/gallery/democracy-n-action-25-powerful-political-thrillers|access-date=February 17, 2016|archive-date=November 30, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151130012953/http://www.ew.com/gallery/democracy-n-action-25-powerful-political-thrillers|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Home media==
The theatrical cut of the film was released on DVD on June 15, 1999.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.joblo.com/blu-rays-dvds/release-dates/?month=June&year=1999 |title=Blu-Ray Release Dates, 4k, Streaming and DVD Releases. &#124; JoBlo.com |access-date=2017-11-22 |archive-date=2017-12-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201040441/https://www.joblo.com/blu-rays-dvds/release-dates/?month=June&year=1999 |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[director's cut]] was released on [[DVD]] as part of an Oliver Stone boxset in 2001, running 212 mins and including 28 minutes of previously deleted scenes. Much of the added time consists of two scenes: one in which Nixon meets with [[Central Intelligence Agency]] director [[Richard Helms]] (played by [[Sam Waterston]]) and another on [[Tricia Nixon Cox|Tricia Nixon]]'s wedding day, where J. Edgar Hoover persuades Nixon to install the taping system in the [[Oval Office]]. The Director's Cut was released individually on DVD in 2002.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113987/alternateversions |title=Nixon (1995) - IMDb |website=[[IMDb]] |access-date=2018-07-21 |archive-date=2021-02-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218202441/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113987/alternateversions |url-status=live }}</ref> The Director's Cut was re-released by [[Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment]] (branded as Hollywood Pictures Home Entertainment) on DVD and [[Blu-ray Disc]] on August 19, 2008, with the first [[anamorphic widescreen]] version of the film in North America.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|0113987|Nixon}}
* {{TCMDb title|85072|Nixon}}
* {{Mojo title|nixon|Nixon}}
* {{Metacritic film|title=Nixon}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|nixon|Nixon}}
* [http://www.tysto.com/special/movies.htm#nixon ''White House Museum'' - How accurately did the movie recreate the architecture and floor plan of the actual White House? (Review)]
* [http://www.salon.com/16dec1995/features/stone.html Salon.com Stone interview] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725213057/http://www.salon.com/16dec1995/features/stone.html |date=2008-07-25 }}
* {{YouTube|id=66Mg2MhuOBI|title=''Nixon'' – The Second Coming}}
* {{YouTube|id=23aYkPpyVAc|title=''Nixon'' – Nixon goes to China}}

{{Oliver Stone}}
{{Richard Nixon}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nixon}}
[[Category:1995 films]]
[[Category:1990s biographical drama films]]
[[Category:1995 drama films]]
[[Category:American biographical drama films]]
[[Category:American docudrama films]]
[[Category:American nonlinear narrative films]]
[[Category:American political drama films]]
[[Category:Cinergi Pictures films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Henry Kissinger]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of J. Edgar Hoover]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Leonid Brezhnev]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Mao Zedong]]
[[Category:Films about elections]]
[[Category:Films about presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:Films about Richard Nixon]]
[[Category:Films directed by Oliver Stone]]
[[Category:Films produced by Oliver Stone]]
[[Category:Films produced by Clayton Townsend]]
[[Category:Films produced by Andrew G. Vajna]]
[[Category:Films scored by John Williams]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1920s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1930s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1960s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Films set in the White House]]
[[Category:Films set in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Christopher Wilkinson]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Oliver Stone]]
[[Category:Hollywood Pictures films]]
[[Category:Summit Entertainment films]]
[[Category:Watergate scandal in film]]
[[Category:Films set in California]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:English-language biographical drama films]]