The Apprentice is a 2024 independent[5][6] biographical drama film that examines Donald Trump's career as a real estate businessman in New York City in the 1970s and 1980s, including his relationship with attorney Roy Cohn.

An international co-production between Canada, Denmark, Ireland, and the United States, the film was announced in May 2018, but languished until Abbasi, Stan, and Strong joined in 2023.

The film received praise from critics for its acting, directing, and editing; Trump, meanwhile, described it as a "defamatory, politically disgusting hatchet job" intended to harm his ultimately successful 2024 presidential campaign.

In 1973, a young Donald Trump, after pointing out various wealthy people to his date, meets Roy Cohn, a contentious lawyer known for prosecuting the Rosenbergs, at a New York City social club.

Cohn teaches Trump about dressing well and media relations, and offers his "three rules": always attack, never admit wrongdoing, and always claim victory, even if defeated.

Cohn, using blackmail audiotapes of officials, helps Trump get a $160 million tax abatement for the project, outraging advocates for the poor.

Cohn criticizes unions and welfare queens, presenting himself as a guardian of the American spirit, while attacking rules, morals, and truth.

His mother, Mary Anne, is agonized by this, and by Donald's attempts to manipulate his father's dementia to gain control of his siblings' inheritance to pay off mounting debts.

However, Trump grows resentful of Ivana overshadowing his success and tells her he is no longer attracted to her (though not mentioning his various affairs); she complains of her breast enlargement he requested, and calls him fat, distancing him from her.

Trump muses about becoming President of the United States, talks about the genetic superiority of winners, and expatiates his greatness while looking at the New York skyline.

To prepare for the role during pre-production, Stan listened to tapes of a younger Trump's voice as he did daily tasks, even practicing how his mouth moves, having a talent for imitating people since childhood.

In addition to this, Stan thought about how he was told about the American Dream when, after moving from Romania to the United States, his mother took him to see New York City's skyscrapers.

According to Abbasi, producers had shared the script with multiple filmmakers, including Paul Thomas Anderson and Clint Eastwood, who had turned down the offer to direct, seeing the film as a "business risk".

[40][41] Anthony D'Alessandro of Deadline Hollywood said Briarcliff Entertainment struggled to market the film because of a limited marketing spend, despite its controversies with the former president; iSpot, which tracks TV spots, said there were no spots registered for The Apprentice, and theatrical trailers supposed to be attached to Wolfs were reduced after that film scaled back its release.

The website's consensus reads: "Instead of cross-examining its subject, The Apprentice gives Sebastian Stan the chance to shine in a simplistic yet entertaining foray into the world of a young Trump.

[45] The Times' Kevin Maher gave the film 4/5 stars, writing, "This is the Donald Trump movie that you never knew you needed: full of compassionate feeling yet ruthless in analysis.

"[47] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 2/5 stars, writing, "Director Ali Abbasi has given us fascinating monsters in the past with Holy Spider and Border but the monstrosity here is almost sentimental, a cartoon Xeroxed from many other satirical Trump takes and knowing prophetic echoes of his political future.

[65] Billionaire Dan Snyder, formerly the owner of the Washington Commanders NFL team, invested money in the production of The Apprentice with the impression that the film would be a positive portrayal of Trump.

In a deposition under oath, rendered during their divorce proceedings, Ivana accused Donald of rape and of pulling out her hair by the handful when his plastic surgery to alter his hairline failed.

She claimed that her use of the term "rape" was not meant in a literal or criminal sense and was made during a time of high emotion, stating "Donald and I are the best of friends, and together we have raised three children that we love and are very proud of.

"[73] On May 20, 2024, Variety reported that Steven Cheung, the communications director of Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, threatened legal action over the film.

[67] On May 24, Variety reported that Trump's attorneys sent a cease-and-desist letter to the filmmakers, seeking to block "all marketing, distribution, and publication of the Movie.