The release plans for the long-embattled Donald Trump movie The Apprentice have taken another turn as the filmmakers, who are coming off a warm reception at the Telluride Film Festival, are launching a Kickstarter campaign.
The crowdfunding campaign, titled “Release the Apprentice,” will aim to “lend additional support in order to keep the film in as many theaters as possible for as long as possible,” according to today’s announcement.
The news is interesting given that it has been reported that The Apprentice is set to receive a theatrical release from Tom Ortenberg’s Briarcliff Entertainment on Oct. 11. (No official announcement has been made.)
Currently, the Kickstarter has a goal of $100,000 with incentives for backers that include a replica of cufflinks seen in the film ($400), a producing workshop with producer Daniel Beckerman ($2,500), and an onscreen toupee prop worn by star Sebastian Stan ($3,500).
“The obstacles we have faced releasing this movie are well documented. Our distribution was blocked. We were hit with a cease and desist from Trump’s lawyers,” reads the Kickstarter website. “Major media companies were afraid to show you this movie. Releasing this movie has become a DAVID and GOLIATH struggle, but with your support, you can help #ReleaseTheApprentice.”
The Apprentice, which first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, is directed by acclaimed Iranian-Danish filmmaker Ali Abbasi and written by Vanity Fair reporter Gabe Sherman. It explores Donald Trump’s (Stan) rise to power in 1980s America under the influence of rightwing attorney Roy Cohn, played by Jeremy Strong. Martin Donovan (Tenet) plays Fred Trump Sr. and Oscar and Golden Globe nominee Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm) plays Ivana Trump.
Since the film’s festival debut, its potential release has been mired in uncertainty. Dan Snyder, the pro-Trump billionaire whose Kinematics company put up equity for the film against domestic rights, has been reportedly was displeased with the film’s depiction of Trump and sought to block its release.
“What Abassi’s film reveals most of all is the extent to which the toxicity that’s now an inescapable part of our contemporary reality was shaped by the unholy alliance between two men half a century ago,” reads The Hollywood Reporter‘s review of the film.
