'I made a mistake': The Apprentice director Ali Abbasi apologises after inappropriate gesture towards actor
The Danish-Iranian filmmaker says he is "deeply sorry" for having made "an overly familiar gesture" that he did not "at all perceive as having a sexual nature" with someone he was "happy to see again."
The director of Donald Trump 's early life film, Ali Abbasi , apologized Saturday after being criticized for touching an actor's buttocks at a party outside the Golden Globes , admitting the "overly familiar" gesture caused unease. The Hollywood Reporter reported Friday that the Danish-Iranian filmmaker was dropped by his agency, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), because an actor complained that the director had touched his buttocks at a CAA party outside the Golden Globes on January 5 in Beverly Hills.
"I fully understand that my actions have caused discomfort to someone, whatever my intentions. And I am deeply sorry for that," the director responded Saturday on X. Ali Abbasi explained that he had made "an overly familiar gesture, a slap on the behind," which he did not "at all perceive as having a sexual nature," with someone he was "happy to see again." "I quickly realized that I had misjudged the situation. I apologized to him immediately, and I made sure that this apology was repeated the next day through my representatives," Ali Abbasi wrote.
The director denied being let go for this reason by CAA, saying the split was due to a long-term career choice. "I made a mistake [...] I apologized," he added, hoping that, a week before the Oscars , the focus would remain on the film and its teams.
Also read: “Defamatory”, “sloppy work”: Donald Trump irritated by the film The Apprentice
An explosive biopic about the future US president's early business career, The Apprentice is up for Oscar consideration in the categories of best actor, with Sebastian Stan for his role as Donald Trump, and best supporting actor, with Jeremy Strong, who plays his first mentor, the ruthless and notorious lawyer Roy Cohn. One scene in the film depicts Donald Trump raping his ex-wife, Ivana, who died in 2022. Ali Abbasi says he was inspired by real accusations made by Ivana Trump during her divorce proceedings with the Republican billionaire, which she eventually withdrew.
Trailer - The Apprentice (2024)
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