Topline
Former President Donald Trump called the biopic “The Apprentice,” which opened in theaters over the weekend and depicts Trump’s rise to real estate fame in 1970s New York, a “politically disgusting hatchet job” after its weak showing at the box office.
Jeremy Strong and Sebastian Stan play Roy Cohn and Donald Trump, respectively, in “The Apprentice.” … [+]
Key Facts
Trump called the film a “FAKE and CLASSLESS Movie written about me” in a Truth Social post late Sunday night and questioned whether they had the rights to use the name “The Apprentice,” the same title as the reality competition show Trump hosted from 2004 to 2015.
Trump accused the filmmakers of releasing the film weeks before the election to hurt his campaign, calling it a “cheap, defamatory, and politically disgusting hatchet job.”
He praised his late ex-wife, Ivana Trump, as a “kind and wonderful person” and said he had a great relationship with her until her death in 2022, a possible rebuke to the portrayal of their relationship in the film, which reportedly includes a scene of Trump sexually assaulting her.
Director Ali Abbasi responded to Trump in a post on X Monday morning, offering to call him: “Thanks for getting back to us @realDonaldTrump. I am available to talk further if you want.”
What Else Has Trump Said About “the Apprentice?”
Trump’s campaign spokesperson, Steven Cheung, threatened to sue the filmmakers ahead of its Cannes Film Festival premiere in May, alleging the movie “sensationalizes lies.” Abbasi fired back at a Cannes press conference: “Everybody talks about him suing a lot of people — they don’t talk about his success rate though, you know?” Abbasi also offered to screen the film for Trump, and said he feels the film is less about Trump and more an examination of power in the United States.
How Did “the Apprentice” Fare At The Box Office?
The film had a rough opening weekend, grossing just over $1.5 million to finish in tenth place. The film had a dismal per-theater average gross of $908, the lowest for any film that opened this weekend and the lowest average in the top 10. Its opening gross was on the lower end of Variety’s predictions, which suggested it could earn between $1 million and $3 million in its first weekend. The film was produced on a $16 million budget. Despite the poor performance, the film fared better with critics: It has a 78% score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 86% audience rating, with many critics praising the performances of Sebastian Stan as Trump and Jeremy Strong as his former lawyer Roy Cohn.
Key Background
The film received an eight-minute standing ovation at Cannes, where it drew audible gasps from the audience for a scene that depicts Trump getting liposuction, and another in which Trump throws his ex-wife, Ivana, to the ground and has non-consensual sex with her. The scene may be a reference to a claim Ivana Trump made in a 1989 divorce deposition that Donald Trump had raped her once, but she later walked back the claim in a 1993 statement, saying she felt “violated” but did not want her use of the word “rape” to be “interpreted in a literal or criminal sense.” Trump reportedly denied the rape allegation in 1993. The film struggled for months after its Cannes premiere to find a distributor, until Briarcliff Entertainment secured the rights to a theatrical release in August. The film reportedly angered billionaire investor Dan Snyder, former owner of the Washington Commanders, who donated money to the film under the impression it would be a flattering portrayal of Trump, Variety reported.
Further Reading
‘The Apprentice’ Filmmakers Deny Trump Claims Of ‘Malicious Defamation’ (Forbes)
Why Did ‘The Apprentice’ Bomb? Maybe Because the Most Chilling Thing About Donald Trump Is Offscreen (Variety)
