The Apprentice star on Trump film: 'Art shouldn't demonise or idolise people'
Maria Bakalova plays Ivana Trump in the controversial biopic.
Earlier this week, Donald Trump spoke up for the first time about new biopic The Apprentice – and it's safe to say the former US president didn't seem best pleased about the portrayal of his life in the '70s and '80s.
Describing the film as "fake and classless" and calling those who made it "human scum", Trump accused the film of being a deliberate attempt to hurt his Make America Great Again political movement ahead of the upcoming US Election.
But according to star Maria Bakalova – who plays his first wife Ivana Trump opposite Sebastian Stan's Donald – the purpose of the film was neither to demonise or idolise him.
"We as human beings, we are colourful, we're complex," she told RadioTimes.com in an exclusive interview.
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"I don't think art should demonise or idolise people. People are so much more than just one colour, and depending on the situation, depending on people that you're around, depending on circumstances, you behave differently."
She added: "I think that's the dive into the story of these people in our movie, that you see somebody young, somebody that is in pretty much the shadow of his father, and he just wants to prove himself.
"He's ambitious, he's not stupid. He has big dreams and big goals, and you somehow might find yourself rooting for this person to succeed.
"What this person does with the success he might achieve is a different question, but yeah, I think it's an interesting story, for me."
Bakalova also revealed that starring in the film helped her "understand him a little bit more", and also to understand other people who have played a part in his life, such as Ivana and his former lawyer Roy Cohn (played in the film by Jeremy Strong.)
"These are two people that make him more confident, in my point of view," she said. "But yeah, again, people are just way too colourful to be described with a single word."
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Despite having received generally positive reviews from critics since its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, the film took a long time to find distribution, something which director Ali Abbasi was vocal about. And Bakalova said that she also found it hard to wrap her head around the situation.
"I got a chance to watch it in Cannes and I objectively find it a good movie. I think it's a great film," she said.
"I think it's a movie bigger than just its characters. It's a film about system and the American dream, and the dark side of the American dream, a dive into the inner belly of that system.
"So I watched it, and I found it very fascinating how entertaining the movie is, because going back in the '70s, '80s, the picture of New York, these colourful people, colourful places, strange situations, strange parties. It's so entertaining that I cannot believe that it took a moment to the movie being released."
She continued: "I just hope people go and watch it, because it's an experience. It's a great experience. It's educational, it's fun, it's so well paced as a cinematic experience. So yeah, I'm not... I cannot wait for people to watch it."
The Apprentice is now showing in UK cinemas.
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