The Donald Trump biopic that prompted the former president to threaten legal action has a planned Oct. 11 release date, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The show biz trade outlet reported Friday that Briarcliff Entertainment is distributing “The Apprentice,” and will enter the film in festivals before its theatrical premiere — just weeks before Election Day, when Republican nominee Trump seeks to regain the White House against Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.
“Soooo excited to show the movie to its home audience!!!” director Ali Abbasi gushed on X on Friday. “America here we come.”
“The Apprentice” paints an unflattering portrait of the real estate mogul-turned-president as he rises to power. The plot follows an impressionable Trump learning at the knee of right-wing lawyer Roy Cohn about the ruthlessness of Big Apple politics in the 1980s.
The film received an eight-minute ovation at the Cannes Film Festival in May, and caught the attention of its subject as salacious details about its contents emerged.
One scene depicts Trump raping his wife, Ivana Trump (Maria Bakalova), after she insults his appearance. The alleged incident was based on her 1990 divorce deposition, in which she accused her former husband of rape, but she said later she didn’t mean that charge literally.
“This garbage is pure fiction which sensationalizes lies that have been long debunked,” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said amid the Cannes premiere uproar. He added that Trump would file suit against “false assertions” by “pretend filmmakers.”
Abassi apparently wasn’t frightened by the threat. He said at a Cannes press conference: “I mean, everybody talks about him suing a lot of people. They don’t talk about his success rate though, you know?”
Trump’s team did issue a cease-and-desist letter to threaten potential distributors.
The film also highlights Trump’s vanity, including claims he got liposuction on his love handles and scalp reduction surgery for his bald spot, Inside Edition reported in the segment below:
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.