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      Tom Wilkinson plays James Baker, Chief legal advisor to George W. Bush during the 2000 election

      The Princeton grad and former Marine received his J.D. from the University of Texas in 1952. Originally a Democrat, he left the party in 1970 to lead the Senate campaign for his friend George H.W. Bush, which ended in failure. After serving as Undersecretary of Commerce for President Ford, he worked as chief of staff for President Reagan. In 1984, he managed Reagan's re-election campaign to a landslide victory and became Secretary of the Treasury. After helping place Bush in the White House in 1988, he was appointed to Secretary of State, receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom before leaving the position in 1992. Over the next five years, he founded the James A. Baker Institute of Public Policy at Rice University, published his memoirs and became the Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara.

      Tom Wilkinson has won rave reviews for his portrayal of Benjamin Franklin in the current HBO Films miniseries "John Adams." He recently earned Oscar®, Golden Globe, SAG and BAFTA nominations for "Michael Clayton," and earned an Academy Award® nomination for Best Actor for "In the Bedroom." Wilkinson received a BAFTA award for Best Supporting Actor for the Oscar®-nominated comedy "The Full Monty," as well as Emmy® and Golden Globe nominations for HBO Films' "Normal." His extensive list of film credits also includes "Shakespeare in Love," "Batman Begins," "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Stage Beauty," "Girl with a Pearl Earring," "Oscar and Lucinda," "Wilde," "The Governess," "The Patriot," "A Good Woman," "The Exorcism of Emily Rose," "Dedication" and "Cassandra's Dream." His upcoming projects include "RocknRolla," "Valkyrie" and "Duplicity."