Getty Images/Apprentice Productions Ontario/Profile Productions/Tailored Films
A movie about Donald Trump in the 1970s starring Sebastian Stan as the now-historically-indicted former President of the United States premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this week and is earning rave reviews.
One person who isn’t a fan of the Ali Abbasi-directed film, however, is apparently former Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder.
According to reports, Snyder put money into the film thinking it was going to be a “flattering portrayal” of the three-time married, multiple-times-bankrupt man who is now facing 88 criminal charges, including some related to attempting to overthrow the government on January 6, 2021.
“Sources say Snyder, a friend of Trump’s who donated $1.1. million to his inaugural committee and Trump Victory in 2016 and $100,000 to his 2020 presidential campaign, put money into the film via Kinematics because he was under the impression that it was a flattering portrayal of the 45th president. Snyder finally saw a cut of the film in February and was said to be furious.” [via Variety]
Because Kinematic does not own the copyright to the film, however, they cannot block its release.
One aspect that Snyder took particular issue with is a scene wherein Trump sexually assaults his first wife Ivana, which is what she claimed he did in a 1989 divorce deposition.
“Sources familiar with the back and forth say Snyder took issue with multiple aspects of the film and weighed in on what should be changed. In earlier versions of the screenplay, The Apprentice featured a scene where Trump rapes Ivana. One insider, familiar with the scene that is in the current cut, described it as ‘violent’ and ‘uncomfortable’ and follows a fight between the couple.”
Deadline, in their review of the film out of Cannes, adds that The Apprentice, which still does not have a distributor, paints Trump as “a person, somewhat driven but awkward, a man striving for the approval of a tough-love father, unsure but determined to succeed and even oddly charming at times.”
In addition to Marvel stat Sebastian Stan as Trump, The Apprentice also stars Emmy winner Jeremy Strong as Trump’s infamous former fixer and lawyer Roy Cohn. Additional cast members include Borat 2 breakout Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump, Martin Donovan, Charlie Carrick, Mark Rendall
Because The Apprentice does not yet have a studio to distribute it, it does not have an official release date at this time. Word out of Cannes, however, indicates producers are hoping to get it released by the election in November.