Sebastian Stan Reveals Why People Initially Advised Him Against Portraying Donald Trump In Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice: ‘This Is A Movie About…’
Sebastian Stan recently revealed that people initially advised him against the opportunity of portraying controversial former US president Donald Trump in the upcoming Ali Abbasi biographical drama film The Apprentice. Stan also recalled his first reaction when he landed the part, and the film writer shared that he found those warnings and concern about the role oddly ‘motivating.’ Read on further to know more details!
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Sebastian Stan opened up about his experience playing Donald Trump in The Apprentice. During his candid chat with the publication, Stan also recalled how people initially tried to persuade him not to play this controversial figure in the movie.
According to the film’s official synopsis, The Apprentice follows a young Donald Trump, eager to establish himself as the ambitious second son of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, who comes under the “spell of Roy Cohn, the cutthroat attorney who would help create the Donald Trump we know today.”
When Stan initially offered the role, he struggled to envision himself portraying a young Trump, saying, “It’s funny, I felt similarly about a few things I’ve worked on,” adding, “My initial reaction is, ‘Wow, how the hell am I going to do this?'”
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The Gossip Girl actor added that people suggested him against taking the role, pointing out that he didn’t resemble Trump, noting, “I had people tell me that it’s not safe for me to do it; I had people say that I shouldn’t try to alienate half the country.”
The film’s writer, Gabriel Sherman, told the publication that other actors had already turned down the role, feeling “too scared” to take on the challenge. However, Stan found the fear “weirdly motivating.”
Sebastian Stan’s co-star Jeremy Strong, who is depicting Roy Cohn in the project, told the outlet, “This is a movie about two human beings, not about two villains or monsters. I don’t think the movie attempts to vilify these people. I think it attempts to understand where they came from and how they became who they are.”
Stan added that in some ways, the plot felt like a “love story,” revealing that one of his favorite moments from the beginning was when Strong remarked, “I’m playing a guy named Roy, and you’re playing a guy named Donald.”
The actor further expressed, “Hopefully, this movie leads people towards a reconnection with their own humanity.”
Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice will be released in theaters on October 11, 2024.
