“The Apprentice”: “There is a Trump in all of us” – Sebastian Stan

Sebastian Stan, known to Marvel fans for his portrayal of Bucky Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier, is now transforming into Donald Trump while the United States is in the middle of the presidential campaign. A risky bet to say the least and one on which he explains.

The film takes place in the 1970s and the screenwriter, Gabe Sherman, decided to focus on the relationship between young Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan) and Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong, seen in the excellent series Succession), former advisor to Joseph McCarthy. The cast also includes Martin Donovan as Fred Trump and Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump.

“A lot of people told me not to take the role. Some told me that I didn’t look like him, others that it would be dangerous and still others that I was going to attract the wrath of half the country,” Sebastian Stan confided in the pages ofEntertainment Weekly.

Impossible to engage in training worthy of Marvel to play the former president, driven by a rage to succeed. So Stan called a nutritionist to put on the pounds that would make him look more like Fred Trump’s heir.

“I understand this desire to succeed, to conquer at all costs and to win. I understood this simply from my humble beginnings with the American dream. We love winners in this country. It is a fact that, for me, seems relevant in many ways,” underlined the one who arrived in the United States from Romania at the age of 12.

Understanding the man behind Trump’s image

In recent months – and since the campaign preceding his first term – Donald Trump has been divisive. With shocking statements, shortcuts and untruths, the former real estate mogul president is disturbing. A polarizing figure, if ever there was one, Donald Trump interested the 42-year-old actor precisely because of his image.

“I always thought there was something about this man that needed to be heard. If we research him, we can understand a lot about his behavior. I thought about what might have been a driving force in his life, regardless of what he says,” said Sebastian Stan.

“I think it’s helpful to normalize the people who make us react. And everyone has very strong feelings about him, in two different extremes: either he’s the son of God or he’s Lucifer incarnate, and I think we need to bring him back to earth.”

“To a certain extent,” he continued, “I think there is a Trump in all of us. I know it might not be a popular thing to say, or people might not want to admit it. And if they have such a strong reaction to him, they should actually question their reaction.”

“It’s important to explore the darker elements that live within each of us so that by bringing them to light we can understand how to have a better relationship with that darkness rather than pretending it doesn’t exist. We need to have a healthier relationship with the beast in each of us,” he added.

The apprentice arrives on provincial screens from October 11.