Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 6, 2007 — -- Mr. Smith came to Washington today. Mr. Will Smith, that is.

"This is my first time speaking in D.C. That made me nervous," Smith admitted as he began his speech at the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture. "I didn't want to stand up here looking like a big dummy!"

Smith was in town to campaign against movie piracy. And while he is a very recognizable face, Smith explained that not everyone recognizes him correctly.

"I was coming in [to D.C.]. And I saw an old man and an old woman, and they came up to me and said, 'oh listen, everything you do, we are so proud of you. Just keep doing what you do.'"

Smith, twice nominated for an Oscar, continued the story. "And I said, 'thank you, thank you very much. God bless you.' And I walked away and the lady screamed, 'we're going to vote for you, we love you, Barack!'"

Although Smith has not joined the ranks of actors considering a run for political office, he says he did hope to have a political influence on the crowd at the "Business of Show Business" symposium today, which included lawmakers such as Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

Smith told the audience that movie piracy is tantamount to stealing. And it's not just wealthy superstars like Smith who suffer, he said.

"When you consider issues about Hollywood, like piracy, it's not just me and Tom [Cruise] that you consider. You know there are wonderful Americans that are out there working very hard to create these wonderful products," Smith said.

In a report on this topic released at today's symposium, the Motion Picture Association of America concluded that the movie industry creates more than 1.3 million jobs in the United States with $30.24 billion in wages. On-location production alone pours an estimated $200,000 a day into the cities where filming is taking place, according to the report.

"Policymakers need to understand more clearly the economic power of the movies, the incredible risk and investment involved in making a movie and challenges we face as an industry," MPAA Chairman and CEO Dan Glickman said in a released statement.