How Ron Howard Feels About JD Vance After Directing Movie About His Life

JD Vance wrote a memoir called "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis," which was published in 2016. The book covers the difficulties of the vice presidential candidate's family life and upbringing. A movie version of "Hillbilly Elegy" was released in 2020. It was directed by Ron Howard and starred Gabriel Basso as Vance, Owen Asztalos as the younger Vance, Amy Adams as Vance's mother Bev, and Glenn Close as Vance's grandmother Mamaw. Vance executive produced the movie. In a 2022 Variety interview, Howard shared his reaction to Vance's political career, Senate seat, and support of Donald Trump.

"To be honest, I was surprised," Howard said. "When I was getting to know [JD], we didn't talk politics because I wasn't interested in that about his life. I was interested in his childhood and navigating the particulars of his family and his culture so that's what we focused on in our conversation. To me, he struck me as a very moderate center-right kind of guy."

Howard also pointed out how Vance was formerly not a Trump fan and continued, "He apparently wasn't interested in running for office, but I think his interest was renewed." Reportedly, Vance told Howard that in the future he'd possibly run for office. "Someday came a little sooner than any of us expected," Howard told the outlet. About two years after that interview, Vance became Trump's choice for vice president for the 2024 election. Vance's friendship with Trump's eldest son may have played a part in his position as Trump's running mate.

At the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024, Ron Howard spoke to Deadline about his experience working with JD Vance and his feelings on his seemingly sharp political turn. Referring to their time making "Hillbilly Elegy," Howard said, "However, based on the conversations that we had during that time, I just have to say I'm very surprised and disappointed by much of the rhetoric that I'm reading and hearing."

The "Solo: A Star Wars Story" director also encouraged people to vote, saying, "I think the important thing is to recognize what's going on today and to vote. ... It's not really about a movie made five or six years ago. It is, but we need to respond to what we're seeing, hearing, feeling now, and vote responsibly, whatever that is." In another TIFF 2024 interview with Variety, Howard expressed similar feelings about Vance and the importance of voting. 

Howard didn't mention some of the weird Vance moments seen by millions, but he has previously criticized Donald Trump. In a January 2020 post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Howard didn't hold back. He retweeted a post comparing the reactions of Donald to the reactions of former President Barack Obama and said, "In the entertainment industry many who have known/worked [with] Trump think that while his reality show was fun and ran a long time, he's a self-serving, dishonest, morally bankrupt ego maniac who doesn't care about anything or anyone but his Fame & bank account & is hustling the US." Based on that and his interviews regarding Vance, it seems nearly impossible that Howard and Vance would ever collaborate again.