Trump Biopic ‘The Apprentice’ Surpasses Kickstarter Goal Within A Day – Update

Matt Grobar
·4 min read

UPDATED, 1:57 p.m.: Within a day of launching a Kickstarter campaign in hopes of expanding Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice‘s distribution potential, the filmmakers have exceeded their goal.

While the team behind the hot-button Ali Abbasi film had initially sought $100,000, which would help them get the film in front of as many viewers as possible, they’ve received $139,063 as of this writing from 2,040 backers, with 25 days to go in the campaign.

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Taking to X (formerly Twitter) to celebrate, Abbasi wrote, “Wow we crushed our kickstarter target in one day! Apparently people DO want to see #TheApprentice in cinemas.”

While Briarcliff Entertainment will handle The Apprentice‘s pre-election U.S. release, as we were first to tell you, there had been some uncertainty around the awards prospect’s distribution prospects amid a dispute with Kinematics, the financier backed by Trump supporter Dan Snyder, who reportedly took issue with the film’s depiction of the former President. Kinematics yesterday confirmed its exit from the project due to “creative differences,” with producer Dan Bekerman lifting the lid on an “exciting and excruciating” last six months, trying to get the film in front of an audience, while contending with legal threats from Trump campaign that have yet to materialize.

Premiering at Cannes and recently moving on to Telluride, The Apprentice heads to the Toronto Film Festival for a surprise screening tomorrow night. The film is slated for release on October 11. Read more about the pic’s Kickstarter campaign below.

PREVIOUSLY, September 3: On the heels of its North American premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, Ali Abbasi’s hot-button Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice has launched a grassroots crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter in hopes of bringing the film to as many theaters as possible and keeping it there for as long as possible.

The campaign, dubbed “Release the Apprentice,” asks that film patrons “Help us promote and defend the acclaimed Trump biopic that Corporate America is scared to show you.”

As we were first to tell you, Briarcliff Entertainment is handling the film’s pre-election U.S. release, which is now slated for October 11. Ahead of the date announcement, there was some uncertainty around the awards prospect’s release plans, given a dispute with Kinematics, the financier backed by Trump supporter Dan Snyder, who reportedly took issue with the film’s depiction of the former President. While the Trump campaign has threatened legal action against the filmmakers, it’s yet to materialize.

We were first to report on the project, penned by Gabriel Sherman, which wowed in its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Starring Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Strong and Maria Bakalova, the film focuses on a young Trump (Stan), eager to make his name as a hungry second son of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, who comes under the spell of Cohn (Strong), the cutthroat attorney who would help create the Donald Trump we know today.

Those donating to the film’s fundraising campaign (accessible at the link) will receive some exclusive perks. A $25 donation will allow fans to stream the film after it hits theaters, with $100 giving them the chance to see their name in a special section on the end credits roller. Higher-level pledges have the opportunity to win one of three actual toupees worn by Stan on screen, along with VIP tickets to the film’s NYC premiere. All backers will be provided with an official “Backer Badge Kit” that they can use to amplify the film and the campaign.

In a statement on the Kickstarter launch, executive producer Amy Baer emphasized that “The Apprentice is first and foremost humanist, which makes it radically different from all the political noise” around the project.

Said Daniel Bekerman, who produced for Scythia Films, “Despite the integrity of the film and without even seeing it, Trump’s campaign sought to suppress it. The idea that artists can no longer freely criticize the powerful should concern us all. We need your help to resoundingly reject this dangerous precedent.”

In addition to Bekerman, producers of The Apprentice included Jacob Jarek for Profile Pictures, Ruth Treacy & Julianne Forde for Tailored Films, Louis Tisne and Abassi. Baer and Sherman were joined as exec producers by Fred Benenson, Compton Ross, Thorsten Schumacher, Levi Woodward, Niamh Fagan, Greg Denny, James Shani, Noor Alfallah, Andy Cohen, Andrew Frank, Neil Mathieson, Lee Broda, Blair Ward, Brian Tyler Cohen and Anders Erden.

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