Trump furious over new biographical film

US presidential election

Published 20 October 2024
- By Editorial Staff
Sebastian Stan, who plays Trump in The Apprentice, with producer Greg Denny and director Ali Abbasi.

The Apprentice, a new biographical drama about Donald Trump’s rise in the real estate industry, has drawn sharp criticism from the former president. Trump denounced the film as a “cheap, defamatory, and politically disgusting hatchet job” and labeled it “fake and classless” in a social media post.

Released in October 2024, the film examines Trump’s career in the 1970s and 80s, focusing on his relationship with controversial lawyer Roy Cohn. The film features dramatized scenes, including depictions of Trump’s business dealings, personal relationships, and legal battles.

Trump has reacted strongly to the film, taking to social media to condemn it as a “cheap, defamatory, and politically disgusting hatchet job” aimed at damaging his 2024 presidential campaign. Trump accused the filmmakers of fabricating events and alleged the film was released with the intent of interfering in the election. Trump’s campaign spokesperson echoed these claims, calling the movie “pure fiction”. For example, a scene involving his ex-wife Ivana, who accused him of rape during their 1989 divorce proceedings – a claim she later retracted – was strongly criticized by Trump’s legal team.

“Not a Trump movie”

However, the film’s director, Ali Abbasi, brushed off Trump’s criticism and expressed frustration at the challenges the film faced during its release, citing the fact that Trump’s legal team sent a cease and desist letter aimed at halting the film’s distribution rights in the US.

“I’m fine with people bashing us, praising us, whatever. What I’m not fine with, what really hurts, is the boycott or censorship that, effectively, we went through”, the film’s director said, and further noted that The Apprentice is “not a Trump movie”, but rather “about the becoming of the character Donald Trump as we know him today, through this very specific time and specific relationship”.

According to writer Gabriel Sherman the film was not politically motivated.

“It’s not written to influence people’s minds. It’s written as art, and what people take from it is their own choice”, he said, and added that the movie’s universal themes should encourage audiences to experience it without political bias.

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