- Donald Trump is speaking out against the biopic “The Apprentice,” with his lawyers calling the film a “defamatory farce.”
- The film portrays controversial allegations about Trump's private life.
- Entertainment industry lawyers say proving defamation will be an uphill battle for the embattled former president.
Donald Trump has plenty of legal battles to worry about, but his latest one is one he started himself.
The cease and desist order, obtained by Business Insider's Jacob Shamshian on Friday, states: Trump's lawyer He slammed the independently produced film “The Apprentice,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this week.
In their letter, the lawyers called the Trump biopic a “defamatory travesty,” but entertainment lawyers who spoke to Business Insider said it would be difficult for Trump to prove that, especially when the filmmakers have explicitly said the movie does not reflect the truth.
The film is “inspired by true events,” reports the Associated Press.
“That alone usually gives enough leeway to programme makers to use their freedom of expression and avoid defamation lawsuits,” Kamron Daulatshahi, lawyer at Mills Sadat Daulat Law Firm, told BI.
Daulatshahi said that even if Trump were to prove the film was defamatory, the former president, who is constantly in the news for his numerous felony charges, would have to prove that this one movie had any impact on his brand.
Stephen Chang, a spokesman for Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, previously said in a statement to BI that the film was full of “demonstrably false claims.”
“This rubbish is a complete fabrication sensationalizing a lie that has long since been exposed,” Chan said.
What's fact and what's fiction is unclear, but what is true is that many of the rumors about the in-movie Trump (played by Captain America: The Winter Soldier star Sebastian Stan) have followed the real-life Trump for quite some time.
For example, critics who saw the film at the French Film Festival said it depicted Trump raping his first wife, Ivana, a claim made by Ivana herself but later retracted.
The film also reportedly depicts Trump struggling with erectile dysfunction. While there have been no reports that Trump suffers from erectile dysfunction, this creative liberty may have come about after Trump's former longtime doctor said the president had taken finasteride to treat hair loss, The New York Times reported in 2017. The drug can cause erectile dysfunction.
With Trump going head-to-head with indie film, those rumors could gain attention, Daulatshahi said, referring to what's known as the “Streisand effect” — keeping something secret attracts more attention.
Daulatshahi said the increased attention could also benefit production company Tailored Films, which in an earlier statement described the film as a “fair and balanced portrayal” of the former president.
“If they try to sell, the company They might be hesitant due to potential lawsuits. This seems like a pretty high quality film, so with all the buzz around it might be worth a quick look. It makes sense for a company to take that risk and buy a film.”
Representatives for Trump and Tailored Films did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
