History YMMV / W

** Creator/JoshBrolin recieved little to no awards attention for his performance as Bush.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Arguably the whole point of the film - was President UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds who was TooDumbToLive, a misguided but well intentioned WellDoneSonGuy who just wanted to atone for his past mistakes and do right by his family's legacy, or just an average guy who was in way over his head and couldn't quite comprehend what he'd gotten himself into? Or some combination of these, or something else altogether?

* WTHCastingAgency: It's perhaps as much a failure of the make-up and hairstyling as much as anything else, but Creator/IoanGruffudd in this movie looks absolutely ''nothing'' like the real-life UsefulNotes/TonyBlair. Reportedly, the appearance of Blair in the film's trailer was met with derisive laugher in many UK cinemas.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The portrayal of Jeb Bush as the competent brother that makes W. feel inadequate seems rather odd after his failed 2016 presidential campaign led to Jeb's public image becoming that of a lightweight who quickly petered out of being a serious contender and mostly coasted on his family name.

* HilariousInHindsight: An example that crosses over with HarsherInHindsight: The suggestion that Jeb was the true heir to the Bush dynasty, a dynasty that was destroyed by George, easily falls into both these categories after Jeb's disastrous 2016 presidential campaign. And what was Jeb's last ditch effort to save his campaign in South Carolina? Getting George to campaign for him. The scene in which another Congressional candidate berates George and won't let him get a word in is likewise hilarious when you consider that the reason most people feel Jeb failed is because [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump a certain other candidate]] constantly berated Jeb and would't let him get a word in during debates.

* HilariousInHindsight:
** In a 2004 interview with ''Magazine/{{Playboy}}'', when asked if he would ever make a film about UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush, Creator/OliverStone said this:
--->"It's too soon. You need some historical perspective. We had to wait 20 years to do Nixon. As a dramatist, you have to wait. Right now Bush is in full play. It's not time for a biography."
** Creator/JoshBrolin's father Creator/JamesBrolin, a passionate Democrat, was controversially cast as UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan in the 2003 miniseries ''The Reagans'', and as a Republican Presidential nominee in Season 4 of ''Series/TheWestWing'' who was probably based on George W. Bush.
** Ari Fleischer, the White House Press Secretary, is played by Creator/RobCorddry, of ''Series/TheDailyShowWithJonStewart'' fame, a show famous for not having been exactly the most reverent show towards Bush.
** Another example that crosses over with HarsherInHindsight: The suggestion that Jeb was the true heir to the Bush dynasty, a dynasty that was destroyed by George, easily falls into both these categories after Jeb's disastrous 2016 presidential campaign. And what was Jeb's last ditch effort to save his campaign in South Carolina? Getting George to campaign for him. The scene in which another Congressional candidate berates George and won't let him get a word in is likewise hilarious when you consider that the reason most people feel Jeb failed is because [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump a certain other candidate]] constantly berated Jeb and would't let him get a word in during debates.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The portrayal of Jeb Bush as the competent brother that makes W. feel inadequate seems rather odd after his failed 2016 presidential campaign led to Jeb's public image being that of a lightweight who quickly petered out of being a serious contender and mostly coasted on his family name.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The portrayal of Jeb Bush as the competent brother that makes W. feel inadequate seems rather odd after his failed 2016 presidential campaign led to Jeb's public image being that of a lightweight who quickly petered out and mostly coasted on his family name.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The portrayal of Jeb Bush as the competent brother that makes W. feel inadequate seems rather odd after his failed 2016 presidential campaign seriously hurt Jeb's public image.

* AudienceAlienatingPremise: ''W'' was always bound to be a hard sell, given that it was a {{biopic}} about a President of the United States made while [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush that president]] ''was still in office''. But once it became clear what kind of biopic it really was, it became much more alienating. In a nutshell: the film portrays George W. Bush's presidency as a disaster, but it portrays Bush himself as a well-meaning simpleton who got into politics [[WellDoneSonGuy to gain his father's approval]], ultimately leading to him starting a war for misguided personal reasons. Bush's conservative supporters generally avoided the movie because they found it too critical of him, while many of his liberal detractors avoided it because they thought it was too soft on him, doubtless contributing to the film's failure to recoup its budget and marketing costs.
* AwardSnub: Creator/JoshBrolin recieved little to no awards attention for his performance as Bush.
** There's also those who felt that Creator/RichardDreyfuss' performance as Dick Cheney was more worthy of a film than Bush himself.

* HarsherInHindsight: Creator/JoshBrolin plays George W Bush, who had a drinking problem throughout part of his adult life. On New Year's Eve 2013 Brolin was arrested for a public intoxication.

** In a 2004 interview with Magazine/{{Playboy}}, when asked if he would ever make a film about UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush, Creator/OliverStone said this:
-->"It's too soon. You need some historical perspective. We had to wait 20 years to do Nixon. As a dramatist, you have to wait. Right now Bush is in full play. It's not time for a biography."
** Creator/JoshBrolin's father James Brolin, a passionate Democrat, was controversially cast as UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan in a 2003 miniseries, and as a Republican Presidential nominee in Season 4 of ''Series/TheWestWing'' who was probably based on George W. Bush.
** Ari Fleischer, the White House Press Secretary, is played by Creator/RobCorddry, of ''Series/TheDailyShowWithJonStewart'' fame.
** Another example that crosses over with HarsherInHindsight: The suggestion that Jeb was the true heir to the Bush dynasty, a dynasty that was destroyed by George, easily falls into both these categories after Jeb's disastrous 2016 Presidential Campaign. And what was Jeb's last ditch effort to save himself in South Carolina? Getting George to campaign for him. The scene in which another Congressional candidate berates George and won't let him get a word in is likewise hilarious [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump when you consider why most people feel Jeb failed.]]
** Creator/ChristianBale was the first choice to play W. Bush but ultimately dropped out. 10 years later, he would play Bush's Vice President Dick Cheney in ''Vice''.

* WTHCastingAgency: It's perhaps as much a failure of the make-up and hairstyling as much as anything else, but Creator/IoanGruffudd in this movie looks absolutely ''nothing'' like the real-life UsefulNotes/TonyBlair. Reportedly, the appearance of Blair in the film's trailer was met with derisive laugher in many UK cinemas.