{"id":2263038,"date":"2024-06-08T17:11:02","date_gmt":"2024-06-08T21:11:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/legendary-lord-of-the-rings-actor-takes-bizarre-shot-at-donald-trump\/"},"modified":"2024-06-08T17:13:27","modified_gmt":"2024-06-08T21:13:27","slug":"legendary-lord-of-the-rings-actor-takes-bizarre-shot-at-donald-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/legendary-lord-of-the-rings-actor-takes-bizarre-shot-at-donald-trump\/","title":{"rendered":"Lord of the Rings&#8217; Star Makes Odd Jab at Donald Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flegendary-lord-of-the-rings-actor-takes-bizarre-shot-at-donald-trump%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2263038&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>With us<\/span><\/i><\/a> <i><span>and make a<\/span><\/i> <b><u><i>donation<\/i><\/u><\/b><i><span>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Sir Ian \u2063McKellen, best\u200c known for his role as Gandalf\u200c in the &#8220;Lord\u2064 of the Rings&#8221; films, recently took a shot \u2062at former President Donald Trump&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/orange-county-4-h-celebrates-youth-achievements-at-annual-ceremony\/\" title=\"Orange County 4-H honors youth accomplishments at yearly event.\">public speaking abilities<\/a> during an interview with The\u2063 Times of\u200b London. McKellen, who admitted to watching CNN regularly, called Trump one of the worst public speakers he has ever heard.\u200b However, the irony \u200dof his comments\u200b is clear,\u200c as Trump is known for his \u200dcharismatic and energetic speaking style while the current president, Joe Biden, often struggles with speaking coherently. The interview \u2062also touched on McKellen&#8217;s thoughts on \u2064the end of his acting career \u2063and\u200d other topics, but his criticism of Trump stands out in comparison. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/jussie-smollett-trial-jury-selection-begins-this-week\/\" title=\"Jussie Smollett Trial: Jury Selection Begins This Week\">polarized political landscape<\/a> and upcoming election have made any comparison \u2064between Trump and \u200cBiden\u200c inevitable, but critics would do well to avoid criticizing Trump&#8217;s oratory \u200cskills, especially \u2063given \u2064Biden&#8217;s own struggles with public speaking.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<header> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/commentary\/\">  Commentary <\/a>  <\/p>\n<h2>Legendary &#8216;Lord of the Rings&#8217; Actor Takes Bizarre Shot at Donald Trump<\/h2>\n<p> <span> <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/bchai\/\">  <\/a> <\/p>\n<p> <span>   By <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/bchai\/%20\"><span>Bryan Chai<\/span><\/a> <\/span> <span>   June 8, 2024 at 12:04pm <\/span> <\/span>  <\/header>\n<section>\n<p>Former President Donald Trump is \u2014 often frivolously \u2014 accused of a long and varied list of things.<\/p>\n<p>One critique you don\u2019t hear nearly as often from the peanut gallery, however, is that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-echoing-reagans-genius-new-york-strategy-results-similar-prominent-historian-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trump<\/a> is not a good performative speaker.<\/p>\n<p>(The man is in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wwes-wrestlemania-xl-officially-successful-event-companys-history-wow\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WWE<\/a> Hall of Fame, and professional wrestling is a modern-day vaudeville act, after all.)<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s no longer the case after acclaimed actor Sir Ian McKellen, perhaps best known to worldwide audiences for his portrayal of the wizard Gandalf in \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/lord-rings-trilogy-returning-theaters-going-look-little-different\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Lord of the Rings<\/a>\u201d movies, took a random potshot at the 45th President of the United States in an interview.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking about a wide range of topics with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.com\/culture\/film\/article\/ian-mckellen-if-this-is-my-last-job-id-better-get-it-right-hadnt-i-n3t38g6tb\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Times of London<\/a>, McKellen blasted the oratory skills of Trump.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTrump is an absolute bewilderment,\u201d McKellen said, with The Times noting that the thespian likes to watch CNN.<\/p>\n<p>That proclivity toward CNN does explain a bit of why McKellen is so inclined to blast Trump, but that\u2019s hardly unique to the British actor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI haven\u2019t seen him live,\u201d McKellen continued. \u201cBut he\u2019s one of the worst public speakers there has ever been. Whether he\u2019s reading a script or not, it\u2019s so patent what he is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McKellen levied one last potshot at Trump by recounting his personal childhood: \u201cI remember leaving my school [in Bolton] in the sixth form and cycling down to the town square to see [Welsh Labor Party leader] Aneurin Bevan on the hustings without a microphone.<\/p>\n<div id=\"firefly-poll-container\">\n<p>Do you think Trump is a good orator?<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cThere aren\u2019t any great orators like that around, are there?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The 85-year-old actor discussed a great number of other topics with The Times, including the inevitable end of his acting career looming. But the shots against Trump stick out in the interview like a sore thumb, simply due to comparative optics.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever one may think of Trump\u2019s oratory skills, it\u2019s virtually inarguable that Trump is a better speaker \u2014 by a rather large margin, mind you \u2014 than incumbent President Joe Biden.<\/p>\n<p>Trump and Biden will be inextricably linked to each other as they go head-to-head in the November general election, and all manner of comparison between the two will be inevitable.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to matters of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/impact-bidenomics-memorial-day-weekend-prices-skyrocket-since-2021\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">economy<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/biden-publicly-apologizes-zelenskyy-announces-225-million-additional-ukraine-aid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">world relations<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-campaign-announces-record-shattering-fundraising-haul-following-verdict-nearly-double-biggest-day-ever\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fundraising<\/a>, Trump pretty easily clears Biden \u2014 hence why every critique you hear about the former president these days is about the bogus 34 charges he\u2019s been convicted of in a so<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-official-hints-at-american-support-in-helping-ukraine-attack-russia-in-shocking-policy-shift\/\" title=\"Biden Administration Suggests U.S. Backing for Ukraine Against Russia\">-called hush money trial<\/a> in New York.<\/p>\n<p>And that\u2019s what makes McKellen\u2019s comments so odd.<\/p>\n<p>If you concede the actor\u2019s point and accept his premise that Trump\u2019s a terrible orator \u2026 what does that make the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/white-house-corrected-biden-speeches-148-times-sometimes-totally-changing-meaning-said-fact-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">highly correctable<\/a> Biden?<\/p>\n<p>Unintelligible? Incoherent? Undecipherable?<\/p>\n<p>Given that every American (even Democrats, deep down inside) knows the answer to the above question, critics of Donald Trump would do best to steer away from any mention of oratory skills, at least until November.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<div>\n<p><b><i>An Important Message from Our Staff:<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><i><span>We who work here at The Western Journal have fought for years against Big Tech and the elites who want to shut us down and then shut America down. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>Make no mistake \u2014 nothing will be the same after November 2024. Will you help us fight? Will you <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=BM6XAWRJ8NS7A&#038;utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>help us expose the America-hating elites<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>  who will do everything they can to steal this election? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>We\u2019re a small group of people fighting to save the country for our readers and for our own family and friends. <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=BM6XAWRJ8NS7A&#038;utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>Can we count on your help?<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n<p><i><span>At this point, Big Tech has cut off our access to 90% of advertisers. Imagine if someone took 90% of your paycheck and there was nothing you could do. They\u2019re trying to starve us out.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>Donations from readers like you have literally helped keep our lights on, and <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=BM6XAWRJ8NS7A&#038;utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>we need you<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>  now more than ever. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>We operate on a shoestring budget, but with that budget, we terrify the globalists. Please help us continue the fight. <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=BM6XAWRJ8NS7A&#038;utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>Stand with us<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>, and we will never surrender.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>Thank you for reading The Western Journal and for believing in America. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>It is a pleasure to serve you.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>P.S. Please don\u2019t let the America-hating left win. <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=BM6XAWRJ8NS7A&#038;utm_source=site&#038;utm_medium=westernjournalism&#038;utm_campaign=authorpitch\"><i><span>Stand with us today<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"author-info-44778\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/author\/bchai\/\">  <\/a> <\/p>\n<div>\n<p><label for=\"summary-tab-radio-44778\">Summary<\/label><label for=\"more-info-tab-radio-44778\">More<span> Biographical Information<\/span><\/label><label for=\"posts-tab-radio-44778\">Recent<span> Posts<\/span><\/label><label for=\"contact-tab-radio-44778\" onclick=\"if( typeof grecaptcha=='undefined' ) { let cap_s=document.createElement( 'script' ); cap_s.src='https:\/\/www.google.com\/recaptcha\/api.js?render=6LeJFcsUAAAAAPsIEqvB1EebWbZfqRUe6ebMpGy7'; document.body.appendChild( cap_s ); }\">Contact<\/label><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>  Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics. He graduated with a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. He is an avid fan of sports, video games, politics and debate. <\/p>\n<p>  Birthplace <\/p>\n<p>  Hawaii <\/p>\n<p>  Education <\/p>\n<p>  Class of 2010 University of Arizona. BEAR DOWN. <\/p>\n<p>  Location <\/p>\n<p>  Phoenix, Arizona <\/p>\n<p>  Languages Spoken <\/p>\n<p>  English, Korean <\/p>\n<p>  Topics of Expertise <\/p>\n<p>  Sports, Entertainment, Science\/Tech <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Legendary &#8216;Lord of the Rings&#8217; actor criticizes Donald Trump in an unusual way. Former President Trump, frequently accused of numerous issues, rarely faces this specific critique from critics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2015,"featured_media":2263039,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/Ian-McKellen.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2263038","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/Ian-McKellen.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2015"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2263038"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2263038\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2263039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2263038"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2263038"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2263038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}