Head of State

Mays Gilliam is a Washington, D.C. alderman whose political career appears to be over when he loses his seat. Then the Democratic Party's presidential candidate dies during the campaign, and party operatives, expecting to lose the election anyway, select Gilliam as a stand-in nominee. What begins as a token candidacy turns into something more active once Gilliam starts campaigning his own way, with his older brother Mitch at his side, a campaign manager in Martin Geller, an adviser in Debra Lassiter, and a supporter in Lisa Clark who believes in him, while his former partner Kim sees the nomination as a route back into his life.

The film is a comedy directed by Chris Rock, who also co-wrote it with Ali LeRoi and produced it with Michael Rotenberg and LeRoi. It was Rock's first turn behind the camera, arriving long before Top Five and Misty Green. Rock plays Gilliam, with Bernie Mac as Mitch, alongside Dylan Baker, Nick Searcy, Lynn Whitfield and Robin Givens; the credited cast runs to 115 people.

Released in March 2003, Head of State cost about 35 million dollars and returned roughly 38 million worldwide. On IMDb it holds a 5.6 rating from 327 votes, while a critics' score of 4.8 from 120 reviews sits below that audience figure.