All America wants to meet the “Mr. Deeds” of 1941!
As a parting shot, fired reporter Ann Mitchell prints a fake letter from unemployed "John Doe," who threatens suicide in protest of social ills. The paper is forced to rehire Ann and hires John Willoughby to impersonate "Doe." Ann and her bosses cynically milk the story for all it's worth, until the made-up "John Doe" philosophy starts a whole political movement.
Meet John Doe (1941) is a drama, comedy and romance film directed by Frank Capra, released on March 14, 1941 with a runtime of 2h 3m. It stars Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward Arnold and Walter Brennan. Viewers rate it 7.3 out of 10 across 289 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for Meet John Doe before you stream it.
Gary Cooper
as Long John Willoughby
Barbara Stanwyck
as Ann Mitchell
Edward Arnold
as D.B. Norton
Walter Brennan
as The Colonel
Spring Byington
as Mme Mitchell
James Gleason
as Henry Connell
Gene Lockhart
as Mayor Lovett
Rod La Rocque
as Ted Sheldon
Irving Bacon
as Beany
Regis Toomey
as Bert Hansen
J. Farrell MacDonald
as 'Sourpuss'
Warren Hymer
as Angelface
Directed by Frank Capra, written by Robert Presnell Sr., Robert Riskin and Richard Connell, produced by Frank Capra and Robert Riskin.
Average viewer score of 7.3/10 from 289 ratings.
The meek can only inherit the earth when the John Doe's start loving their neighbours. After crafting Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and Mr. Smith Goes To Washington for Columbia, Capra quit and made this third film about an average Joe who is thrust into a powerful world where exploitation is high on the agenda. Thus, in true Capra style the story unfolds to a customary flip flop triumph. Ann Mitchell (Barbara Stanwyck)…
Reviewed on April 7, 2019
Anyone else think there is a shade of “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939) about this? Journalist “Ann” (Barbara Stanwyck) is shown the door when a new owner decides to sack just about everyone at the paper she works at, but as a parting shot she creates a letter that suggests that a hapless member of the public - one “John Doe” - is so fed up with his lot that he intends to commit suicide from the city hall on…
Reviewed on June 6, 2025
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Meet John Doe (1941) is available to stream on fuboTV, Philo, Brew, MGM Plus, Fandor Amazon Channel, FlixFling, IndieFlix and Artiflix, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Fandango At Home and FlixFling. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of Meet John Doe (1941) includes Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck, Edward Arnold, Walter Brennan and Spring Byington. The film was directed by Frank Capra. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
Meet John Doe was released on March 14, 1941 and runs for 2h 3m.
Meet John Doe (1941) holds an average rating of 7.3 out of 10 from 289 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy drama, comedy and romance films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official Meet John Doe trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
