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Joh: Last King of Queensland

A captivating and cautionary portrait of one of Australia’s most controversial politicians, Joh Bjelke-Petersen, whose career can be seen as a playbook for the Trump era.

Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen reigned over Queensland for 19 tumultuous years (1968–1987). Hugely popular, he presided over enormous growth, but corruption raged under his tenure, as did electoral manipulation and often violent suppression of dissent. This film tells Joh’s story through rare archival footage and revelatory interviews, exploring a life shaped by a hard yakka, god-fearing upbringing on his family’s farm. Trump’s spectre is evoked in Joh’s famously mangled and meandering way of speaking – brilliantly dramatised by Richard Roxburgh – alongside his unyielding execution of power and the desperate denial of his final days in office.

Original title: Joh: Last King of Queensland
Genre: Documentary
Director: Kriv Stenders
Cast: Joh Bjelke-Petersen, Matthew Condon, Bob Katter, Richard Roxburgh, Lindy Morrison, Ed Kuepper, John Howard, David Littleproud
Country: Australia
Studios: WildBear Entertainment
Language: en
Year: 2025
Duration: 99
Release date: 2025-06-07
TMDB: 0.000 · 0 votes
Status: Released