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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Phil Hoad

With Venezuela, Trump has achieved his dream of making his own 80s action movie

‘We’ve done some other good ones’ … Donald Trump gives a press conference following the arrest of Nicolás Maduro, 3 January 2026.
‘We’ve done some other good ones’ … Donald Trump gives a press conference following the arrest of Nicolás Maduro, 3 January 2026. Photograph: Nicole Combea/Pool/Nicole Combea - Pool/CNP/Shutterstock

The box office barnstormer of 2026 arrived early this year. A sleazy banana-republic dictator flooding the American streets with blow. The over-the-border Delta Force extraction squad sent to pluck this schmo out of his impregnable fortress. The bronzed tough-talker who’s firing an RPG up the tailpipe of the international rules-based order – but who gets the job done. Call it: Caracas Thunder.

Sounds like a bit of a throwback, you might be thinking. But, judging by his press conference after the US military’s abduction of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, Donald Trump seemed to have finally achieved his dream of directing his own 80s action movie.

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