Director’s cut of ‘Reagan’ set for September 25 as ad fight against censorship continues

YouTube has blocked ads promoting interviews tied to the 2024 biopic “Reagan,” according to the film's producer Mark Joseph, who said the platform treated the clips as election advertising as the film heads back to theaters.

“We have no idea why YouTube is seeking to suppress conversations with newsmakers like John Hinckley and entertainers like Kathie Lee Gifford, Tanya Tucker and some of our actors," Joseph told Just The News. 

"These are some of the least political people I know and yet half of our videos are not being allowed to be boosted," he continued. "These are important conversations that the American people should be allowed to access. We hope YouTube will come to its senses and allow these conversations and the news about our film to reach people.” 

Joseph said promotions for his podcast series “Making Reagan” were flagged after featuring Gene Simmons, Kathie Lee Gifford, John Hinckley Jr. and other people connected to the movie. He said YouTube did not allow an appeal and that the conversations were about the film, not a campaign or politics.

YouTube claimed that some of the ads referenced officeholders and therefore fell under its U.S. election ads policy, which requires advertisers to be certified, and the company said an ad for the Simmons episode was rejected because it contained profanity.

Joseph said a director’s cut with 10 extra minutes is scheduled to open in about 600 theaters on Sept. 25. He said the production earlier ran into similar advertising limits on Facebook.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Polling yields high marks for Reagan's Quaid

The re-release follows a new poll commissioned by Foundations of Freedom which found Daniel Day-Lewis’ portrayal of Abraham Lincoln ranked as respondents’ favorite presidential performance on film and television. Robin Williams’ turn as Theodore Roosevelt in “Night at the Museum” finished second, and Dennis Quaid’s Ronald Reagan in the 2024 biopic “Reagan” placed third. 

Other performances also ranked, including Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump, Josh Brolin as George W. Bush, Paul Giamatti as John Adams and additional Reagan portrayals.

The survey, conducted by Symphony Technology Group among 642 respondents, was released as “Reagan” returns to theaters Sept. 25 in a director’s cut with about 10 minutes of new footage, timed to America’s 250th anniversary. 

After a limited theatrical run, publicly-traded Lionsgate is expected to release the extended version on digital platforms, Blu-ray and DVD. Additional theater and home-release details have not been announced.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​