John Oliver Calls Jimmy Stewart a 'Bad Actor' in Segment on Filibuster Reform (Video)

We’re guessing John Oliver isn’t a fan of Turner Classic Movies.

In a segment on filibuster reform on Sunday’s “Last Week Tonight,” Oliver showed a clip of James Stewart in the classic “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” and made fun of his grandstanding performance from the climax of the movie.

“He was a bad actor,” Oliver said before taking a swipe at Old Hollywood. “They were all pretty bad back then, but he was especially bad.”

Also Read: John Oliver Warns Against Feeling 'Depressingly Familiar Numbness' in Wake of Mass Shootings

If you haven’t seen “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” it’s a 1939 drama from Frank Capra starring Stewart as a naive, wholesome junior senator who is elected based on his noble values, only to come face-to-face with the cynicism and corruption that’s rampant in American politics. It all culminates with Mr. Smith taking a big stand by desperately filibustering for hours on the Senate floor until he becomes so impassioned and exhausted that he collapses.

It’s a rousing scene, but it’s also a cliche, as Oliver rightly noted, in that movies and TV tend to characterize the filibuster as a “heroic” act in which a senator talks endlessly. Of course, as Oliver spells out for the duration of the segment’s 19 minutes, that’s hardly how the filibuster is used today in the Senate. Incredibly, you don’t even have to actually stand up and talk endlessly to do it.

Regardless of what Oliver thinks of the movie, “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” was nominated for both Best Picture and for James Stewart as Best Actor, for 11 Oscar nominations in all.

Check out Oliver segment on filibusters above.

'It's a Wonderful Life': Cary Grant Almost Played George and 15 Other Surprising Facts (Photos)

TheWrap takes a look at some fun trivia about "It's a Wonderful Life," courtesy of its lead reviewer Alonso Duralde, as well as IMDb and Old Hollywood biographer Robert Matzen's book, "Mission: Jimmy Stewart and the Fight for Europe." You can also go to IMDb for more trivia, goofs and quotes from "It's a Wonderful Life."
The film technically started as a greeting card. When author Philip Van Doren Stern failed to find a publisher for his book about a man named George Pratt who considers suicide until he gets a chance to see what the world would be like without him, he printed it as his Christmas card in 1943. One of the 200 cards he self-published eventually made its way to RKO Pictures producer David Hempstead, who purchased the rights. Capra bought the rights a year later, turning "The Greatest Gift" into "It's a Wonderful Life."
Liberty Films
The film, although now considered a classic, was such a financial disappointment that it busted Capra's production company, Liberty Films.
Getty Images
According to Matzen, "It's a Wonderful Life" was Jimmy Stewart's first picture after 20 months on the front lines of WWII. He reportedly suffered post-traumatic stress disorder while filming.
Liberty Films
When the rights were still held at RKO, Cary Grant was slated to play the lead role of George Bailey made iconic by Jimmy Stewart.
According to Alonso Duralde's book "Have Yourself a Very Movie Christmas," Uncle Billy actor Thomas Mitchell was actually considered to play Mr. Potter, but Lionel Barrymore (pictured) got the role due to his popularity after radio versions of "A Christmas Carol."
Getty Images
Jimmy the Raven appeared in Capra's "You Can't Take It With You" (1938) and other post-"Wonderful Life" Capra movies.
Liberty Films
According to Matzen, the original screenplay began with a scene in Benjamin Franklin's workshop in heaven.
Liberty Films
Yes, Bert and Ernie from "Sesame Street" have the same names as the cop and the cab driver in "It's a Wonderful Life." But it's just a coincidence, "Muppets" insiders have claimed.
Liberty Films
The disgruntled prankster who opens the gymnasium floor, revealing the pool during the school dance, is none other than Carl Switzer (right), who played Alfalfa in the Little Rascals shorts.
Jimmy Stewart said that while filming the scene in which George prays in Martini's bar, he began sobbing so convincingly, in fact, Capra later cropped the shot to better capture his expression. That's why the shot appears grainy compared to the rest of the film.
Liberty Films
The FBI flagged the film as Communist propaganda, issuing a memo in which the bureau claimed the film "represented rather obvious attempts to discredit bankers" and "deliberately maligned the upper class."
"It's a Wonderful Life" represented the first and last time Capra produced, financed, directed and co-wrote a film.
(Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Actor and producer Sheldon Leonard said that he only agreed to play Nick the bartender so he could buy baseball tickets with his paycheck.
Liberty Films
Robert J. Anderson, who played young George Bailey, said Mr. Gower actor H.B. Warner really was drunk in the scene in which he slaps George. The real slaps caused real blood to ooze out of Anderson's ear. After the cameras stopped rolling, he comforted Anderson.
Liberty Films
"It's a Wonderful Life" was ranked the No. 1 Most Inspirational Movie of All Time by the American Film Institute in 2006.
Liberty Films
The film became infinitely more popular when its rights lapsed, creating a free-for-all for broadcasters to play it nonstop on television during the holidays. That ended when NBC acquired the exclusive rights in 1994.

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Here’s some trivia you may not have known about the classic Frank Capra film

TheWrap takes a look at some fun trivia about "It's a Wonderful Life," courtesy of its lead reviewer Alonso Duralde, as well as IMDb and Old Hollywood biographer Robert Matzen's book, "Mission: Jimmy Stewart and the Fight for Europe." You can also go to IMDb for more trivia, goofs and quotes from "It's a Wonderful Life."

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'It's a Wonderful Life': Cary Grant Almost Played George and 15 Other Surprising Facts (Photos)

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