Donald Trump biopic depicting him as a rapist hits Cannes, prompts lawsuit threats

Donald Trump's biopic ‘The Apprentice’ hit the screens at the Cannes Film Festival, prompting a lawsuit from the US presidential candidate's team.

Published on: May 21, 2024, 09:53:30 IST

By HT News Desk | Written by Vaishnawi Sinha | Edited by Aniruddha Dhar

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‘The Apprentice’, an explosive new biopic on former US President Donald Trump, made its debut in the Cannes Film Festival on Monday, just as he is gearing up to run for the White House again. However, the controversial biopic already prompted a lawsuit threat from Trump's team for “sensationalized lies” over certain scenes.

Former US President Donald Trump (AFP) (AFP)

"The Apprentice" traces Trump's origin story as an ambitious young property developer in 1970s and 1980s New York. However, the movie opens with a disclaimer that many of its events are fictionalised.

Marvel fame Sebastian Stan stars as a young Donald Trump while Jeremy Strong of "Succession" fame plays his ruthless mentor and attorney Roy Cohn.

In one of the more shocking scenes of the movie, Donald Trump is seen raping his first wife Ivana. During divorce proceedings, Ivana once accused Donald Trump of raping her, though she later rescinded the allegation. She died in 2022.

Another scene from the movie that drew audible gasps from the Cannes audience was the scene with Donald Trump in a surgery room getting liposuction.

‘The Apprentice’ director Ali Abbasi presented an almost sympathetic image of Donald Trump, a headstrong but naive social climber who saw his decency being eroded as he delves deeper into the world of politics and power.

The movie appears to have already infuriated Trump's team. His campaign communications director Steven Cheung said a lawsuit would be filed "to address the blatantly false assertions from these pretend filmmakers".

Cheung told AFP, “This garbage is pure fiction which sensationalises lies that have been long debunked.”

The biopic received rave reviews. The Times of London even argued that it would "make you feel sympathy for Trump," while Variety said it was "sharp and scathing, but it avoids cheap shots."

The movie made hit the screens at the French film festival on the backdrop of Donald Trump currently being on trial in Manhattan surrounding a hush money scandal, involving porn star Stormi Daniels.

(With inputs from AFP)

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