Donald Trump biopic 'The Apprentice' sparks legal threats and controversy
Donald Trump wanted to block the release. He threatened lawsuits if anyone had a chance to see the film. "The Apprentice" saw the light of day anyway.
"This ‘film’ is pure malicious defamation, should not see the light of day, and doesn’t even deserve a place in the straight-to-DVD section of a bargain bin at a soon-to-be-closed discount movie store, it belongs in a dumpster fire," read a statement from Donald Trump's lawyers.
Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump and Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn in "The Apprentice"
"The Apprentice" already had its festival premiere, but now we know that the film about the early career of Donald Trump will hit cinemas on 11 October. Young Trump is played by Sebastian Stan, and his mentor, Roy Cohn, is played by Jeremy Strong, known from "Succession." Director Ali Abbasi shows how the wealthy Cohn "creates" Trump, advising him on how to look, what to do, and how to speak.
The film's subject matter, the creation of Donald Trump as the king of American business, is controversial, but so are certain scenes, including those depicting Donald and Ivana's marriage. One fragment of the film is said to show Trump forcing his wife, Ivana, into sex. The issue has been widely known for many years.
In the trailer that debuted online, you can see how Donald met Ivana as a model. Scenes from their married life, arguments, and Trump's surgeries flash by.
When Trump divorced his wife in the 90s, she accused him of rape. In Harry Hurt III's book "Lost Tycoon: The Many Lives of Donald J. Trump," she confirmed that she felt "violated." Trump's lawyers responded immediately. It was stated that by saying "rape," Ivana did not mean a crime, a literal rape. During the divorce, it was established that Ivana had been "inhumanely treated" by her husband. Ivana had to sign an agreement according to which she could not speak about her marriage to the politician without his consent. She received £11 million, a 45-room mansion, a flat in Trump Plaza, and could use Mar-a-Lago freely for one month a year.
Ivana categorically denied being raped by her husband after the divorce.
"She testified about it under oath during the divorce trial. Then she changed her testimony under pressure from Trump's lawyers. Later, when he wanted to become President of the United States, and she, the mother of his children, who could go to the White House, repeatedly said that nothing like that had happened. So, if you're a creator and you want to stick to the most emotionally true version of the story, which one do you choose?" said the film's screenwriter, Gabriel Sherman.
