Irony? White House Requests to See Steven Spielberg’s Pro-Media Movie ‘The Post’

Film stars Meryl Streep, whom President Trump deemed “overrated” just a year ago

The Post Tom Hanks Meryl Streep
20th Century Fox

Steven Spielberg’s “The Post,” about a newspaper President Trump has repeatedly slammed as “fake news,” may soon be coming to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

The White House has asked that the drama, about The Washington Post’s fight for freedom of the press in the 1970s, be screened at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. as well as Camp David, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The White House’s request was also corroborated to TheWrap by a source with knowledge of the situation.

The move comes just days after the president announced he would soon be handing out awards for the “most dishonest & corrupt” publications of the year. More recently, the president has tried to block the publication of a damning new tell-all book by author and Michael Wolff, which has triggered criticism from free speech advocates.

The White House did not immediately responded to TheWrap’s requests for comment on Friday. But the decision to request the movie seems ironic, considering the drama centers around the Post’s publication of the “Pentagon Papers” in 1971, which led to a Supreme Court decision that was a major victory for the press in its battle against censorship by the government.

The Trump administration’s request is equally confounding, considering Meryl Streep — who stars in “The Post” as the paper’s legendary publisher — made headlines for her eloquent takedown of the president at last year’s Golden Globes ceremony. Trump then fired back on Twitter, calling the actress “overrated.”

Its star Tom Hanks — who plays former Post editor, Ben Bradlee — said earlier this month that he would “probably not” accept an invitation to see the movie at the White House in the event he received one.

When it comes to White House screenings, TheWrap learned of another new movie Trump’s camp requested, arguably more apropos of his administration: circus-themed musical “The Greatest Showman,” starring Hugh Jackman.

Meriah Doty contributed to this report.

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