Actor Dennis Quaid believes a “spiritual reawakening” is happening in the United States as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Fox News host Dana Perino asked the star of hits like “The Right Stuff” (1983), “The Rookie” (2002), and more recently the Christian film “I Can Only Imagine” (2018) during a Wednesday interview on “The Daily Briefing” about his thoughts regarding the COVID-19 outbreak.
“This is our World War II moment really,” he responded. “I think there’s going to be a spiritual reawakening in this country.”
“We already see it, everybody coming together. There’s going to be something really powerful and wonderful that comes out of all of this for us as a people I think and the world,” Quaid, who was wearing a cross around his neck, added.
“It’s already happening. We’re already relearning how to do many things in our life and to think of others at the same time,” he said.
The Hollywood celebrity launched a new podcast called “The Dennissance” last week, and he told Perino the first four people the program will feature include country music stars Billy Ray Cyrus and Tanya Tucker, as well as television personality Billy Bush and Jim Morris, the real-life former major league baseball pitcher played by Quaid in “The Rookie.”
The actor explained that the name of the podcast was inspired by the resurgence he has seen in his acting career and personal life in recent years, saying he’s been a “lucky” man.
Quaid believes some of the skills he has acquired in acting, particularly portraying real-world people, transfer well to being an interviewer.
“My favorite part [of movie making] is research and in doing that, it’s a little like being an investigative journalist and getting to the essence of somebody,” he said. “I’m now taking that process and taking it to a podcast interview form.”
Asked by Perino what he’s looking forward to most when the coronavirus restrictions are lifted, the star said getting married to his fiancée Laura Savoie.
The couple was slated to tie the knot on April 4 at actor Craig T. Nelson’s house on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, but now is looking to do something more in the heart of America.
Regarding his religious beliefs, Quaid said in a 2005 BeliefNet interview that he “grew up Baptist and still goes to church.”
“I myself have explored other religions, because I want to know what it is that makes other people tick,” he added. “I find we’re all talking about the same thing, really — it’s all God.”
Quaid wrote and performed the original song “On My Way To Heaven” for the “I Can Only Imagine” soundtrack.
The lyrics to the tune go, in part, “My life may not be roses but still I’m gonna be alright, long as I got my Savior by my side.”
“He freed me from the heavy chains that had bound my broken heart, picked me up; gave me a brand new start.”
“I wrote it for my mom because my mom has always been there, her faith is unquestionable, so solid,” Quaid told CBN News in 2018. “So I wrote it for her, but I guess it’s my story.”
Randy DeSoto is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book “We Hold These Truths” and screenwriter of the political documentary “I Want Your Money.” He writes for The Western Journal where this article first appeared.