View source for Wag the Dog

{{short description|1997 film by Barry Levinson}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Wag the Dog
| image          = Wag The Dog Poster.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Barry Levinson]]
| producer       = {{Unbulleted list|Barry Levinson|[[Robert De Niro]]|[[Jane Rosenthal]]}}
| screenplay     = {{Unbulleted list|[[Hilary Henkin]]|[[David Mamet]]}}
| based_on       = {{based on|''[[Wag the Dog (novel)|American Hero]]''<br>1993 novel|[[Larry Beinhart]]}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Dustin Hoffman]]
* Robert De Niro
* [[Anne Heche]]
* [[Denis Leary]]
* [[Willie Nelson]]
* [[Andrea Martin]]
* [[Kirsten Dunst]]
}}
| music          = [[Mark Knopfler]]
| cinematography = [[Robert Richardson (cinematographer)|Robert Richardson]]
| editing        = [[Stu Linder]]
| studio         = {{unbulleted list|Baltimore Pictures|[[TriBeCa Productions]]}}
| distributor    = [[New Line Cinema]]
| released       = {{film date|1997|12|17|[[Century City]]|1997|12|25|United States}}
| runtime        = 97 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $15 million<ref name="Turan" />
| gross          = $64.3 million<ref name="BOM">{{cite web | url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2172225025/ | title=Wag the Dog (1997) | work=[[Box Office Mojo]] | access-date=April 2, 2017 | archive-date=November 19, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119091937/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=wagthedog.htm | url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

'''''Wag the Dog''''' is a 1997 American [[black comedy film| black comedy]] [[political satire]] film starring  [[Dustin Hoffman]] and [[Robert De Niro]].<ref name=Turan>{{cite web | last=Turan | first=Kenneth | title='Wag the Dog' Is a Comedy With Some Real Bite to It | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-24-ca-1649-story.html | work=Los Angeles Times | quote=A gloriously cynical black comedy that functions as a wicked smart satire on the interlocking world of politics and show business ... | date=December 24, 1997 | access-date=April 18, 2017 | archive-date=April 3, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403204048/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-24-ca-1649-story.html | url-status=live }}</ref> Produced and directed by [[Barry Levinson]], the film centers on a [[spin (public relations)|spin doctor]] and a Hollywood [[film producer|producer]] who fabricate a war in [[Albania]] to distract voters from a presidential sex scandal. The screenplay by [[Hilary Henkin]] and [[David Mamet]] is loosely adapted from [[Larry Beinhart]]'s 1993 novel ''[[Wag the Dog (novel)|American Hero]]''.

''Wag the Dog'' was released one month before the news broke of the [[Clinton–Lewinsky scandal]] and the [[Operation Infinite Reach|bombing]] of the [[Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory]] in Sudan by the [[Clinton administration]] in August 1998, which prompted the media to draw comparisons between the film and reality.<ref>{{cite news | title=Wag the Dog Back In Spotlight | url=http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/08/21/wag.the.dog/index.html?_s=PM:ALLPOLITICS | work=CNN | date=August 20, 1998 | access-date=May 23, 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915020805/http://articles.cnn.com/1998-08-21/politics/wag.the.dog_1_people-from-terrorist-activities-dogs-military-strikes?_s=PM:ALLPOLITICS | archive-date=September 15, 2012 | url-status=live | df=mdy-all }}</ref> The comparison was also made in December 1998, when the administration initiated a [[Operation Desert Fox|bombing campaign of Iraq]] during Clinton's [[Impeachment of Bill Clinton|impeachment]] trial for the Clinton–Lewinsky scandal.<ref>{{cite news | title=Cohen criticizes 'wag the dog' characterization | url=https://edition.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/03/23/wag.dog/ | work=CNN | date=March 23, 2004 | access-date=October 8, 2018 | archive-date=June 8, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608115936/http://edition.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/03/23/wag.dog/ | url-status=live }}</ref> It was made again in spring 1999, when the administration intervened in the [[Kosovo War]] and initiated a [[NATO bombing of Yugoslavia|bombing campaign]] against [[Serbia and Montenegro|Yugoslavia]], which, coincidentally, bordered Albania and contained ethnic Albanians.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Reed |first1=Julia |title=Welcome to Wag the Dog Three |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/welcome-to-wag-the-dog-three-1086640.html |work=The Independent |date=April 11, 1999 |access-date=November 18, 2019 |archive-date=December 8, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208082700/https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/welcome-to-wag-the-dog-three-1086640.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The film grossed $64.3 million on a $15 million budget, and was well received by critics, who praised the direction, performances, themes and humor. Hoffman received a nomination for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his performance, and screenwriters [[David Mamet]] and [[Hilary Henkin]] were both nominated for [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Adapted Screenplay]].

==Plot==
The President of the United States is caught making advances on an underage girl inside the [[Oval Office]] less than two weeks before the election. Conrad Brean, a top [[spin doctor]], is brought in by presidential aide Winifred Ames to take the public's attention away from the scandal. He decides to construct a fictional war in Albania, hoping that the media will concentrate on this instead. Brean contacts [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] producer Stanley Motss to create the war, complete with a theme song and fake film footage of a fleeing orphan to arouse sympathy. The hoax is initially successful, with the president quickly gaining ground in the polls.

When the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] learns of the plot, it sends Agent Young to confront Brean about the hoax. Brean convinces Young that revealing the deception is against his and the CIA's best interests. But when the CIA—in collusion with the president's rival candidate—reports that the war has ended, the media begins to revert its focus to the president's sexual misconduct scandal. To counter this, Motss invents a hero who was left behind enemy lines in Albania.

Inspired by the idea that he was "discarded like an old shoe", Brean and Motss ask the Pentagon to provide a special forces soldier with a matching name (a sergeant named "Schumann" is identified), around whom a [[Prisoner of war|POW]] narrative can be constructed. As part of the hoax, folk singer Johnny Dean records a song called "Old Shoe", which is pressed onto a [[78 rpm|78-rpm record]], prematurely aged so that listeners will think that it was recorded years earlier and sent to the [[Library of Congress]] to be "found". Bream and Motss fling pairs of old shoes into a tree outside of the [[White House]] grounds. Soon, large numbers of shoes [[Shoe tossing|begin appearing]] on phone and power lines, and a [[Grassroots|grassroots movement]] to bring home Schumann takes hold, completing a successful [[astroturfing]].

When the team goes to retrieve Schumann, they discover that he is actually a criminally insane Army convict. On the return to [[Andrews Air Force Base]], their plane crashes. The team survives and is rescued by a farmer, an illegal alien. However, Schumann is killed when he attempts to rape a gas station owner's daughter. Seizing the opportunity, Motss stages an elaborate military funeral for Schumann, claiming that he died from wounds sustained during his rescue, and the farmer receives expedited citizenship for a better story.

As the President rallies toward re-election, Motss becomes frustrated that the media are crediting his upsurge in the polls to the bland campaign slogan, "Don't change horses in mid-stream", rather than to Motss's hard work. Despite Brean's offer of an ambassadorship and the dire warning that he is "playing with his life", Motss demands that he receive credit for his production, and he threatens to reveal his involvement unless he gets it. Realizing that he has no choice, Brean orders his security staff to kill him. A newscast reports that Motss has died of a heart attack at home, the president has been successfully re-elected, and an Albanian terrorist organization has claimed responsibility for a recent bombing, suggesting that the fake war is becoming real.

==Cast==
{{castlist|
* [[Dustin Hoffman]] as Stanley Motss
* [[Robert De Niro]] as Conrad Brean
* [[Anne Heche]] as Winifred Ames
* [[Denis Leary]] as Fad King
* [[Willie Nelson]] as Johnny Dean
* [[Andrea Martin]] as Liz Butsky
* [[Kirsten Dunst]] as Tracy Lime
* [[William H. Macy]] as CIA Agent Charles Young
* [[John Michael Higgins]] as John Levy
* [[Suzie Plakson]] as Grace
* [[Craig T. Nelson]] as Senator Neal
* [[George Gaynes]] as Senator Cole
* [[Sean Masterson]] as Bob Richardson
* [[Woody Harrelson]] as Sergeant William Schumann
* [[Suzanne Cryer]] as Amy Cain
* [[James Belushi]] as Himself
* [[Shirley Prestia]] as Herself
* [[Pops Staples|Roebuck "Pops" Staples]] as Himself
* [[Merle Haggard]] as Himself
}}

==Production==
===Title===
The title of the film comes from the English-language [[idiom]] "[[wikt:tail wagging the dog|the tail wagging the dog]]"<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/wag+the+dog.html|title=Idiom: wag the dog|website=usingenglish.com|access-date=May 22, 2011|archivedate=May 16, 2011|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516075159/http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/wag+the+dog.html|url-status=live}}</ref> which is referenced at the beginning of the film by a caption that reads:

{{poemquote|Why does the dog wag its tail?
Because a dog is smarter than its tail.
If the tail were smarter, it would wag the dog.}}

===Motss portrayal===
Hoffman's character, Stanley Motss, is said to have been directly based on famed producer [[Robert Evans]]. Similarities have been noted between the character and Evans's work habits, mannerisms, quirks, clothing style, hairstyle and large, square-framed eyeglasses. In fact, the real Evans is said to have joked, "I'm magnificent in this film".<ref name="Nwk">{{cite news|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1998/04/05/tiger-plays-it-cool-under-big-cat-pressure/|title=Tiger Plays It Cool Under Big-cat Pressure|date=April 5, 1998|work=Orlando Sentinel|access-date=April 5, 2013|archive-date=July 1, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701072745/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1998-04-05/news/9804040759_1_tiger-mcmillan-bodyguard|url-status=live}}</ref>

While Hoffman has never discussed deriving his portrayal from Evans, the [[commentary track]] for the film's [[DVD]] release makes the claim.{{cn|date=October 2024}} Hoffman had originally planned to portray the character in the 1984 film ''[[The Muppets Take Manhattan]]'' but pulled out of that film fearing that Evans would have been offended by the portrayal.<ref name="TP">{{cite web |author=Ryan Roe |date=March 18, 2011 |title=A Q&A with Muppet Writer David Misch |url=https://www.toughpigs.com/david-misch/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324025325/http://www.toughpigs.com/david-misch/ |archive-date=March 24, 2012 |access-date=January 28, 2012 |website=ToughPigs |via=[[WordPress]]}}</ref>

===Writing credits===
Writing credits for the film became controversial due to objections by Barry Levinson. After Levinson became attached as director, [[David Mamet]] was hired to rewrite [[Hilary Henkin]]'s screenplay, which was loosely adapted from [[Larry Beinhart]]'s novel, ''American Hero''.

Given the close relationship between Levinson and Mamet, [[New Line Cinema]] asked that Mamet be given sole credit for the screenplay. However, the [[Writers Guild of America]] intervened on Henkin's behalf to ensure that Henkin received first-position shared screenplay credit, finding that, as the original screenwriter, Henkin had created the screenplay's structure, as well as much of the screen story and dialogue.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-may-11-mn-48618-story.html|title=Giving Credit Where It's Due |last=Welkos|first=Robert W.|date=May 11, 1998|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=November 13, 2010|archive-date=August 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816071221/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-may-11-mn-48618-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Levinson threatened to quit the Guild (but he did not), claiming that Mamet had written all of the dialogue, as well as creating the characters of Motss and Schumann, and had originated most of the scenes set in Hollywood, and all of the scenes set in Nashville. Levinson attributed the numerous similarities between Henkin's original version and the eventual shooting script to Henkin and Mamet working from the same novel, but the Writers Guild of America disagreed in its credit arbitration ruling.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.eonline.com/ca/news/35690/woof-and-warp-of-dog-screen-credit |first=Bridget |last=Byrne |title=Woof and Warp of "Dog" Screen Credit |website=E! Online |date=December 23, 1997 |access-date=June 1, 2011 |archive-date=November 6, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106003748/https://www.eonline.com/ca/news/35690/woof-and-warp-of-dog-screen-credit |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Music==
{{more citations|section|date=July 2025}}
{{Main|Wag the Dog (soundtrack)}}
The film features many songs created for the fictitious campaign waged to deflect the president's sex scandal. These include "Good Old Shoe", "The American Dream" and "The Men of the 303". However, the film’s soundtrack [[Compact disc|CD]] features only the title track (by British guitarist and vocalist [[Mark Knopfler]]) and seven of Knopfler's [[instrumental]]s.<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|author=Erlewine, Stephen Thomas|title=Wag the Dog|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/wag-the-dog-mw0000031821|accessdate=24 November 2012}}</ref>

===Songs as listed in the film's credits===
* "[[Thank Heaven for Little Girls]]": written by [[Lerner and Lowe]], performed by [[Maurice Chevalier]]
* "I Guard the Canadian Border": written by [[Tom Bähler]] and [[Willie Nelson]], performed by Willie Nelson
* "The American Dream": written by Bähler, performed by Bähler
* "Good Old Shoe": written by [[Edgar Winter]], performed by Nelson and [[Pops Staples]]
* "Classical Allegro": written by [[Marc Ferrari]] and Nancy Hieronymous
* "Courage Mom": written by [[Merle Haggard]] and performed by Merle Haggard and [[The Strangers (American band)|the Strangers]]
* "[[Barracuda (song)|Barracuda]]": written by [[Heart (band)|Heart]], referenced by [[Woody Harrelson]] in character
* "[[I Love the Nightlife]]": written by [[Alicia Bridges]] and Susan Hutcheson
* "God Bless the Men of the 303": written by [[Huey Lewis]], performed by Lewis, [[Scott Mathews]], and [[Johnny Colla]]
* "Wag the Dog": written and performed by Mark Knopfler

==Reception==
In a contemporary review, [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' awarded the film four stars out of four, and wrote in his review, "The movie is a satire that contains just enough realistic ballast to be teasingly plausible; like ''[[Dr. Strangelove]]'', it makes you laugh, and then it makes you wonder."<ref>{{Cite web | first=Roger | last=Ebert | title=Wag The Dog | url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wag-the-dog-1998 | work=[[RogerEbert.com]] | publisher=Ebert Digital LLC | date=January 2, 1998 | access-date=April 18, 2017 | archive-date=April 19, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419100924/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/wag-the-dog-1998 | url-status=live }}</ref> He ranked it as his tenth favorite film of 1997.<ref>{{Cite web | first=Roger | last=Ebert | title=The Best 10 Movies of 1997 | url=https://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-best-10-movies-of-1997 | work=[[RogerEbert.com]] | publisher=Ebert Digital LLC | date=December 31, 1997 | access-date=February 22, 2019 | archive-date=April 4, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200404064220/https://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-best-10-movies-of-1997 | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2020, [[Ann Hornaday]] of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' rated it at number 12 on her list of the best political movies ever made.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Ann |last1=Hornaday |title=Perspective {{!}} The 34 best political movies ever made |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2020/01/23/34-best-political-movies-ever-made/ |newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |date=2020-01-23 |access-date=January 24, 2020 |archive-date=January 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220114100249/https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2020/01/23/34-best-political-movies-ever-made/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Wag the Dog'' has an approval rating of 86% on [[Rotten Tomatoes]], based on 78 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Smart, well-acted, and uncomfortably prescient political satire from director Barry Levinson and an all-star cast."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wag The Dog |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wag_the_dog/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520081442/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/wag_the_dog |archive-date=May 20, 2021 |access-date=October 22, 2024 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], which assigns a weighted average rating, the film holds a score of 74 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wag The Dog |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/wag-the-dog/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308192139/http://www.metacritic.com/movie/wag-the-dog/critic-reviews |archive-date=March 8, 2016 |access-date=October 22, 2024 |website=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "B–" on a scale of A+ to F.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/ |access-date=2024-10-22 |website=CinemaScore |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Accolades===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Award
! Category
! Nominee(s)
! Result
! Ref.
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[70th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]
| [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| [[Dustin Hoffman]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1998 |title=The 70th Academy Awards (1998) Nominees and Winners |access-date=November 19, 2011 |work=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |publisher=AMPAS |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109213426/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1998 |archive-date=November 9, 2014}}</ref>
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Based on Material Previously Produced or Published]]
| [[Hilary Henkin]] and [[David Mamet]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Casting Society of America#Artios Awards|Artios Awards]]
| [[Artios Award for Outstanding Achievement in Casting - Big Budget Feature (Comedy)|Best Casting for Feature Film – Comedy]]
| [[Ellen Chenoweth]] and [[Debra Zane]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.castingsociety.com/awards/artios/1998 |title=Nominees/Winners |website=[[Casting Society of America]] |access-date=January 6, 2019 |archive-date=August 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180816125851/http://www.castingsociety.com/awards/artios/1998 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[48th Berlin International Film Festival|Berlin International Film Festival]]
| [[Golden Bear]]
| rowspan="2"| [[Barry Levinson]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref name="Berlinale">{{cite web |url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/jahresarchive/1998/03_preistraeger_1998/03_preistraeger_1998.html |title=Berlinale: 1998 Prize Winners |access-date=August 15, 2022 |work=berlinale.de |archive-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223140650/https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/jahresarchive/1998/03_preistraeger_1998/03_preistraeger_1998.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize|Special Jury Prize]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[52nd British Academy Film Awards|British Academy Film Awards]]
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Adapted Screenplay]]
| Hilary Henkin and David Mamet
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/1999/film |title=BAFTA Awards: Film in 1999 |website=[[BAFTA]] |year=1999 |access-date=16 September 2016 |ref={{harvid|BAFTA|1999}} |archive-date=March 7, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307174641/http://awards.bafta.org/award/1999/film |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[3rd Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web | title = The BFCA Critics' Choice Awards :: 1997 | website = Broadcast Film Critics Association | url = http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1997.php | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081212034404/http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1997.php | url-status = dead | archive-date = December 12, 2008 | access-date = January 7, 2014 }}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[55th Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy|Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/wag-dog |title=Wag the Dog – Golden Globes |website=[[HFPA]] |access-date=July 5, 2021 |ref={{harvid|HFPA|1998}} |archive-date=June 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210621032819/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/wag-dog |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy|Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy]]
| Dustin Hoffman
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Motion Picture]]
| Hilary Henkin and David Mamet
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[National Board of Review Awards 1997|National Board of Review Awards]]
| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]]
| [[Anne Heche]] {{small|(also for ''[[Donnie Brasco (film)|Donnie Brasco]]'')}}
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1997/ |title=1997 Award Winners |website=[[National Board of Review]] |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=May 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210528071255/https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1997/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[1997 National Society of Film Critics Awards|National Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| Dustin Hoffman
| {{draw|3rd Place}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/about-2/ |title=Past Awards |website=[[National Society of Film Critics]] |date=December 19, 2009 |access-date=July 5, 2021 |archive-date=May 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150531032303/https://nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com/about-2/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="3"| Online Film & Television Association Awards
| Best Comedy/Musical Picture
| [[Danny DeVito]], Barry Levinson, and [[Jane Rosenthal]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oftaawards.com/film-awards/2nd-annual-film-awards-1997/ |title=2nd Annual Film Awards (1997) |website=Online Film & Television Association |access-date=May 15, 2021 |archive-date=October 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201016002955/http://www.oftaawards.com/film-awards/2nd-annual-film-awards-1997/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| Best Comedy/Musical Actor
| Dustin Hoffman
| {{nom}}
|-
| Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium
| Hilary Henkin and David Mamet
| {{nom}}
|-
| Political Film Society Awards
| colspan="2"| [[Political Film Society Award for Democracy|Democracy]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Russian Guild of Film Critics|Russian Guild of Film Critics Awards]]
| Best Foreign Actor
| [[Robert De Niro]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[2nd Golden Satellite Awards|Satellite Awards]]
| [[Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture|Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy]]
| Dustin Hoffman
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pressacademy.com/award_cat/1998/ |title=1998 Satellite Awards |website=[[Satellite Awards]] |access-date=August 24, 2021 |archive-date=May 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502202216/https://www.pressacademy.com/award_cat/1998/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture|Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy]]
| Anne Heche
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[4th Screen Actors Guild Awards|Screen Actors Guild Awards]]
| [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role|Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role]]
| Dustin Hoffman
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/4th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards|title=The 4th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards|work=[[Screen Actors Guild Award]]s|access-date=May 21, 2016|archive-date=November 1, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111101205428/http://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/4th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| [[Turkish Film Critics Association|Turkish Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Best Foreign Film 
| {{draw|7th Place}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[50th Writers Guild of America Awards|Writers Guild of America Awards]]
| [[Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Based on Material Previously Produced or Published]]
| Hilary Henkin and David Mamet
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1517|title=Writers Guild Awards Winners|access-date=March 7, 2019|website=WGA|year=2010|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120525050852/http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1517|archive-date=May 25, 2012}}</ref>
|}

==Home media==
''Wag the Dog'' was released on [[VHS]] on November 3, 1998, and on [[DVD]] on November 15, 2005.<ref>{{Citation |last=Levinson |first=Barry |title=Wag the Dog |isbn=0780623959 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Levinson |first=Barry |title=Wag The Dog |date=2005-11-15 |url=https://www.amazon.com/Wag-Dog-DVD-Larry-Beinhart/dp/B00G4QEU8W |publisher=Warner Bros. |access-date=2022-08-06 |archive-date=August 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806043015/https://www.amazon.com/Wag-Dog-DVD-Larry-Beinhart/dp/B00G4QEU8W |url-status=live }}</ref> It is not available on [[Blu-ray]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Wag The Dog Blu-ray |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Wag-the-Dog-Blu-ray/67567/ |website=Blu-ray.com |access-date=May 4, 2023 |archive-date=October 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011191500/https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Wag-the-Dog-Blu-ray/67567/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Television adaptation==
On April 27, 2017, ''[[Deadline Hollywood|Deadline]]'' reported that Barry Levinson, Robert De Niro and [[Tom Fontana]] were developing a television series based on the film for [[HBO]]. De Niro's [[TriBeCa Productions]] was to co-produce, along with Levinson's and Fontana's companies.<ref>{{cite web | last=Petski | first=Denise | title='Wag The Dog' Comedy Series In Works At HBO | url=https://deadline.com/2017/04/wag-the-dog-comedy-series-hbo-barry-levinson-1202078631/ | website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] | publisher=Penske Business Media, LLC | date=April 27, 2017 | access-date=April 27, 2017 | archive-date=April 29, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429043308/http://deadline.com/2017/04/wag-the-dog-comedy-series-hbo-barry-levinson-1202078631/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Film|United States|1990s}}
* [[Astroturfing]], a controversial public relations practice depicted in the film
* ''[[Canadian Bacon]]'' and ''[[Wrong Is Right]]'', films about an American war started for similar reasons

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|120885|Wag the Dog}}
* {{TCMDb title|id=319830}}
* {{AFI film|61660}}
* {{mojo title|wagthedog|Wag the Dog}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|wag_the_dog|Wag the Dog}}

{{Barry Levinson}}
{{David Mamet}}
{{Silver Bear for Jury Grand Prix}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wag The Dog}}
[[Category:1997 films]]
[[Category:1997 black comedy films]]
[[Category:1990s political films]]
[[Category:1990s political satire films]]
[[Category:American black comedy films]]
[[Category:American political satire films]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:Films about television]]
[[Category:Films about elections]]
[[Category:Films about fictional presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:Films about journalists]]
[[Category:Films based on American novels]]
[[Category:Films directed by Barry Levinson]]
[[Category:Films produced by Robert De Niro]]
[[Category:Films produced by Jane Rosenthal]]
[[Category:Films set in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Films set in the White House]]
[[Category:Films shot in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by David Mamet]]
[[Category:Films scored by Mark Knopfler]]
[[Category:New Line Cinema films]]
[[Category:Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize winners]]
[[Category:Films about media manipulation]]
[[Category:Films about conspiracy theories]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:English-language black comedy films]]
[[Category:Clinton–Lewinsky scandal]]