As a seasoned gamer of global cinema trends, I must say that the release of “The Apprentice” in Russia is as unpredictable as a high-stakes game of chess between two grandmasters. The film’s journey to the big screen has been fraught with legal battles, censorship issues, and geopolitical intrigue – making it a real-life thriller that even the most imaginative scriptwriters might find hard to believe.
The critically acclaimed Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice — which the former president has repeatedly denounced — is heading to cinemas in a somewhat surprising place: Russia.
The upcoming film, penned by esteemed Vanity Fair journalist Gabriel Sherman and helmed by up-and-coming Iranian-Danish director Ali Abbasi, will debut on 800 screens in Russia this coming Friday. Moscow’s distributor Arna Media is overseeing the release following their acquisition of the local rights from U.K. sales agent Rocket Science last month. It is said that minimal alterations were necessary to make the movie suitable for Russian viewing.
Despite the close ties reported between Russian President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia’s public release strategy appears to contrast this, as it has been known to crack down on artistic expression that goes against its regime’s interests. For instance, Moscow has conducted raids at concerts, imposed fines on musicians who have spoken out against the country’s conflict in Ukraine, added dissenting filmmakers to their wanted lists, and suppressed books and art exhibitions.
Recently, journalist Bob Woodward disclosed that Trump has had multiple conversations with Putin following his departure from the White House. Simultaneously, Trump has warned to take legal action against the producers of The Apprentice, labeling the movie as “a cheap, defamatory, and politically repugnant piece of character assassination.
It’s unfortunate that such disrespectful individuals, who are part of this potentially failing venture, can freely express harmful remarks against a Political Movement, as Trump stated in a post on Truth Social.
Film critics, however, have taken a different view. The Apprentice debuted to rave reviews and an eight-minute standing ovation when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The powerful work from the film’s key cast — Marvel star Sebastian Stan in a riveting turn as the young Donald; Succession favorite Jeremy Strong bringing his full method-actor intensity to the dark eccentricities of Cohn; and Borat 2 breakout Maria Bakalova as a vivacious young Ivana Trump — have made the movie an Oscars frontrunner in several categories for the 97th Academy Awards.
Even in Russia, just like here in the U.S., the path for this movie to reach our screens was filled with challenges. I’ve been eagerly waiting to see it, but it seems the process wasn’t as smooth as we all hoped.
Following the initial screening in France, Trump’s legal team submitted a cease and desist letter, warning they would sue the makers of The Apprentice, as well as any future broadcasters. Simultaneously, it was revealed that Kinematics, the main financier of the film (established by producer Mark Rapaport, who is married to billionaire and Trump donor Dan Snyder’s daughter), objected to a crucial scene in the movie depicting a young Donald allegedly sexually assaulting his then-wife Ivana Trump.
A prolonged dispute about the ending of the movie emerged, and the possibility of backlash from a possible second Trump presidency made all major U.S. film studios and streaming platforms decline to distribute the movie. However, at the last minute, Kinematics reached an agreement with indie distributors Briarcliff Entertainment and startup company Rich Spirit, allowing the movie to be released in North America on Oct. 11. This deal also allowed Abbassi, the director, to regain control of the final cut of the film, which he then re-edited intensively, enhancing several scenes, such as the scene depicting sexual assault.
Initially, producers faced demands to eliminate the rape scene from the Russian release. However, director Abbassi strongly advocated for its relevance within the movie’s context. Eventually, a compromise was made and the version of the assault scene shown at Cannes remained intact in the final Russian cut, rather than the extended and more explicit depiction proposed by Abbassi.
It’s not surprising that a distributor from Russia might be eager to introduce The Apprentice. Given that the country has been deprived of Hollywood films since the studios imposed a boycott on the Russian market following Moscow’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, independent companies have thrived due to the absence of studio competition.
In North America, the television series titled “The Apprentice” debuted last month with a lower-than-anticipated $1.6 million during its opening weekend. Since then, it has garnered around $3.9 million within the U.S., contributing to a global total of approximately $12 million. Starting on Friday, November 1st, this series will be accessible through premium video-on-demand platforms such as Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, and Vudu.
James Shani, the executive producer, expresses satisfaction with that figure,” he says. “Right from the start, we anticipated that this movie would gradually gain recognition during awards season and even afterwards.
Shani also mentioned that the viewership of “The Apprentice” has experienced a minor dip due to the fact that the movie had to withdraw from multiple international markets over censorship concerns. Abbassi and his production team held discussions with film regulators in India, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore regarding these issues, but found that the alterations demanded by these regions were too extreme. Some of the proposed edits aligned with the typical policies of these conservative and censorious territories. However, it became evident to the “The Apprentice” team that the regulators were being unusually strict because of the film’s high-profile theme, which revolves around a character who might soon reclaim the U.S. presidency.
According to Shani, it seemed like they were requesting more than typical, perhaps to minimize risks, given the sensitive nature of the situation involving Trump.
Scott Roxborough contributed to this report from Germany.
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2024-11-01 15:25