Don’t Look Up Easter Eggs Make Meryl Streep’s President Even Worse

Meryl Streep’s President Orlean is the science-skeptical head of state in Don’t Look Up that dismisses the plausibility of an apocalypse, and Easter eggs in the film reveal the true extent of her iniquity. Orlean is one of the film’s primary antagonists: she possesses the power to respond to the danger posed by a comet discovered by PhD candidate Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) but neglects the claims of her and tenured professor, Dr. Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio). Orlean is a president that is focused on the power of her position, and how to retain it in the upcoming midterms, rather than the responsibility she has for her country.

When Dibiasky and Mindy finally receive an audience with the president to discuss the severity of the comet’s probable impact on Earth, they are met with hostility from Orlean and her pretentious son and chief of staff, Jason (Jonah Hill). Their warnings are only appreciated upon approval by “Ivy Leaguers,” and only acted upon when it suits Orlean’s political strategy. Orlean seems more like a tycoon than a president, and small details in the film reveal the extent to which she is an awfully inappropriate head of state.

The Oval Office occupied by Orlean is authentic in appearance yet furnished with Easter eggs that illuminate her tyrannical personality. Bookshelves are filled with copies of her book as if a meeting with astronomers is a potential marketing opportunity. The office is further embellished with images of notorious past presidents, including Andrew Jackson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton. This highlights both her character’s shallow, economically motivated opportunism, but also her questionable choice of role models as a president.

The exposure granted as president indicates that the prevalence of the book written by Meryl Streep’s president is evocative of her narcissistic tendencies, rather than any form of genuine promotion. Her choice of presidential icons, meanwhile, are all remembered, if not defined, by their respective controversies: Jackson was involved in the institution of slavery and also responsible for the implementation of legislation for the forced relocation of Indigenous Americans; Nixon resigned from office, before probable impeachment, following the Watergate scandal in which he was complicit. The former presidents are certainly unexpected choices for portraits on the walls of the Oval Office. The farcical choices of decor are accompanied by a framed photograph of Clinton embracing Orlean, perhaps intended to be reminiscent of the 42nd president’s affair with Monica Lewinsky.

Orlean’s choices of inspirational figures are unusual for a president to have, and certainly inappropriate to publicize. Her personal malice as president is clear throughout the satirical plot of Don’t Look Up, but even egregious and oppressive politicians often declare their heroes as historical figures that are typically revered. The presidents immortalized in Orlean’s office, however, are often remembered for their notoriety. Orlean is not simply a caricature of a foul president, but she ultimately seems to be exactly the type of president she aspires to be.

About The Author