Marvel star Sebastian Stan will play Donald Trump in an upcoming biopic, to be joined by Succession’s Jeremy Strong and Oscar nominee Maria Bakalova in leading roles.
Directed by Iranian film-maker Ali Abbasi, The Apprentice, which commenced production this week, is billed as an exploration of power and ambition in a world of corruption and deceit.
It is set in the 1970s and 80s and follows the former US president’s journey to becoming a New York real estate tycoon, alongside his relationship with Roy Cohn – the notorious attorney who became a mentor to Trump, and was later disbarred for unethical conduct.
The film’s logline describes it as “a mentor-protege story that charts the origins of an American dynasty” and “reveals the moral and human cost of a culture defined by winners and losers”.
Stan – best known for his role as a Captain America sidekick, as well as his Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated turn as Tommy Lee in the miniseries Pam & Tommy – will play a young Trump.
Strong has been cast as Cohn, Deadline reports. Bakalova – who broke out as Borat’s daughter in 2020’s Borat Subsequent Moviefilm – will play Trump’s first wife, Ivana.
Abbasi’s 2022 thriller Holy Spider was recently submitted as Denmark’s entry for best international feature film at the Oscars. Abbasi also helmed the last two episodes of acclaimed video game adaptation The Last of Us.
The film’s writer is journalist and author Gabriel Sherman, whose book The Loudest Voice in the Room – a biography of Fox News founder Roger Ailes – was adapted into the 2019 Showtime miniseries The Loudest Voice, starring Russell Crowe as Ailes.
Trump is currently facing 91 felony charges in four separate criminal cases, as well as a highly publicised fraud case currently on trial in Manhattan. The twice-impeached former president is also expected to become the Republican candidate in next year’s US election, with huge leads in current polling.
