The trailer for “The Apprentice” introduces Sebastian Stan’s Donald Trump

Long before he played the leading role in The ApprenticeDonald Trump himself was an apprentice to none other than the notorious lawyer Roy Cohn.

This mentorship is hinted at in the newly released trailer (below) for the new Trump origin story – also fittingly The Apprentice – in which Sebastian Stan in particular plays an uncanny portrayal of the young Trump. Consequence “The 40 Fingers” star Jeremy Strong also stands out in his role as Cohn, known for sending the Rosenbergs to the electric chair during the Red Scare and later serving as Trump’s lawyer when he was accused of violating the Fair Housing Act.

“Donald who?” Strong's Cohn asks when Trump knocks on his door. Given how much Trump has infiltrated culture and politics lately, it seems like an odd question. But it's also a good reminder that he wouldn't be Trump without Cohn.

Cohn's rules for success are Trump's current playbook. “The first rule is attack, attack, attack,” he says in the trailer. “Rule 2: admit nothing, deny everything. Rule 3: no matter what happens, claim victory and never admit defeat… You have to be willing to give anyone anything to win.”

Director: Ali Abbasi (Holy Spider, Border) and written by journalist Gabriel Sherman, the biopic traces the rise of the former president and convicted felon to real estate mogul in the 1970s and 1980s. It also shows his first marriage to Ivana Trump, played by Borat – Episode 1 Outbreak Maria Bakalova.

The cast is rounded off by Martin Donovan (weed, principle, Ant Man) as Donald's father Fred Trump and Joe Pingue (The vastness, The Book of Eli) as mafia boss Anthony Salerno.

Like its subject matter, the film made headlines this year. Shortly after its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, the Trump campaign threatened legal action and sent a cease-and-desist letter to prevent the film's release.

“We will be filing a lawsuit to denounce the blatantly false claims made by these wannabe filmmakers,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement at the time. “This garbage is pure fiction that inflates lies that have long been disproven. Like the illegal Biden trials, this is election interference by Hollywood elites who know President Trump will retake the White House and beat their preferred candidate because nothing they have done has worked.”

Accordingly diversityIn response, Abbasi said he would welcome the chance to show the film to Trump, adding: “I don't necessarily think he wouldn't like this film.”

Abbasi continued, “I don't necessarily think he would like it. I think he would be surprised, you know? And as I said, I would offer to meet him wherever he wants and talk about the context of the film, host a screening and chat with him afterward if that's something that would be of interest to anyone on the Trump campaign team.”

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The Apprentice hits theaters on October 11. Watch the full trailer for the film above.