Beau Willimon
Beau Willimon
Pack Beauregard "Beau" Willimonis an American playwright and screenwriter. He is the creator of the Netflix original series House of Cards and served as showrunner for the first four seasons...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionScreenwriter
Date of Birth1 August 1975
CountryUnited States of America
believe people creative
In politics, it's very theatrical. There's a lot of stage craft. The campaign is trying to tell a story that they want people to believe in, and candidates are playing the role, like actors, by a creative personae that people will be attracted to.
people notes scenarios
In the best possible scenario, whenever you get notes from people, they're good notes, and they see things that you wouldn't have seen otherwise, and they make you a better writer.
campaign change desire drawn gets joined people politics side sort start tactics turned
Like any young person who gets into a political campaign, I joined out of a highfalutin' desire to change the world. But you start to see the sort of tactics people use. You start to see politics not only in the macro but in the micro of the campaign itself. Some people get turned off by this side of it. Other people are drawn to it.
ability affect determine looking millions opposed people power price private remain sphere tag ways
I think, people who remain in the political sphere as opposed to going into the private sector, really what they're looking at is how in some ways the compensation is power. How do you place a price tag on the ability to affect millions of people's lives? How do you place a price tag on the ability to determine the rules by which all of us play?
asked consider dressed optimist people politics robes surprised whether
A lot of people have asked me whether I am a cynic or take a cynical view of politics and are often surprised when I say that I consider myself an optimist, but an optimist dressed in the robes of a realist.
anyone exciting people psyched side themselves
People in D.C. are so psyched when anyone dramatizes them in an exciting way. They're a lot more open to looking at the nastier side of themselves than the media is.
absolutely factories gonna job prep sat
There were many years when I was hand-to-mouth and didn't know how I was gonna make rent. I've done every job under the sun, from busing tables, temping, and working in factories to SAT prep and detailing cars. So to be able to make a living where all I do is write is absolutely liberating.
best cynical fact human politics represent worst
The way I see politics is, I don't think it's cynical to accept the fact politicians are human beings, that they're flawed, and they represent the best and the worst of us.
hollywood life playwright theater work
The economics of being a playwright are abysmal. I like to think of the work I do out in Hollywood as a way to actually make a life in the theater easier.
certainly life stranger time washington
I certainly keep my eye on Washington all the time because often life is stranger than fiction.
amount money power reality terms wield work
The reality is that politicians, in terms of the amount of power they wield and the amount that they work, don't actually make that much money.
character able location
Film is much more visual, a scene is typically a lot shorter, you're dealing with a lot more characters, a lot more locations, and you're able to rely on things that you just can never do on the stage.
slavery facts constitution
The fact that slavery is written into the Constitution is about as entrenched a form of classism as you could possibly imagine.
government balance way
The checks and balances is a way to prevent government from either devolving into an autocratic tyranny or an autocratic mob mentality.