What did Ron Howard, director of 'Hillbilly Elegy' say about JD Vance?
He's concerned.

Ron Howard was likely never going to vote for Donald Trump, calling the
former president at one time a "self-serving, dishonest, morally bankrupt
ego maniac." Nevertheless, the 70-year-old Oscar-winning filmmaker has
been trending again after recent comments he made about JD Vance.

Howard knew Vance long before the Ohio senator accepted Trump's offer to
become the Republican vice presidential running mate. He helped turn
Vance's memoir, "Hillbilly Elegy" into a film, serving as its director in
2020.
What did Ron Howard say about JD Vance?

During a recent interview with Variety at the Toronto International Film
Festival, Howard said he was "surprised and concerned" with "a lot of the
rhetoric" coming out of Trump and Vance's 2024 campaign.

"There was no version of me voting for Donald Trump to be president
again, whoever the vice president was," he said. "But given the
experience that I had then, five (or) six years ago, yeah, I'd say that
I've been surprised."

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The JD Vance he knew four years ago wasn't involved in nor claimed to be
particularly interested in politics, Howard said in a recent interview
with Deadline, while adding the subject of politics wasn't discussed in
length during the making of the film.

"We've got to get out and vote, for whomever," he told Variety. "But be
thoughtful, listen to what the candidates are saying today � that's
what's really relevant, who they are today � and make a decision, an
informed one."
How to watch 'Hillbilly Elegy'

The film "Hillbilly Elegy" is available to watch on Netflix, which
acquired the movie's distribution rights in 2019, according to People
Magazine. It appeared in select theaters in November 2020 before moving
to the streaming platform later that month.
What is 'Hillbilly Elegy' about?

"Hillbilly Elegy" is a movie adaptation of Vance's 2016 memoir, released
by HarperCollins Publisher, which chronicles Vance's childhood in the
poor Rust Belt town of Middleton, Ohio. Both the film and book address
issues touching on poverty, substance abuse addiction and the struggles
of white working-class families.

"An urgent phone call pulls a Yale Law student back to his Ohio hometown,
where he reflects on three generations of family history and his own
future," according to a film summary on Netflix. The movie is rated R for
mature themes that include child and domestic abuse.

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