The Apprentice director sheds light on groping accusation and apologizes for ‘mistake'
Ali Abbasi, the director of the controversial Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice, has spoken out about recent accusations that he groped an A-list celebrity following the 2025 Golden Globes.
On Friday, reports broke that the 44-year-old Iranian-Danish filmmaker had been dropped by his American representatives in the aftermath of allegations that he had 'aggressively groped an A-list, CAA-repped actor' at an afterparty for the January award ceremony.
Abbasi has since released a statement on X/Twitter, apologizing for his 'mistake.'
'I fully understand that my action made someone uncomfortable, regardless of my intent, and for that I am truly sorry,' he wrote.
He went on to provide more context on the situation, explaining: 'I had spent time with the person concerned on multiple occasions and had reason to think we had a friendly relationship. When I saw him at the Golden Globes party, I was excited to reconnect.
'I made an over-familiar gesture—a slap on the rear-which I intended as playful and not in any sexual way whatsoever. I quickly realized I had misjudged the situation. I apologized to him on the spot, and the following day I made sure my apology was reiterated through my representatives.'
Continuing, Abbasi denied rumors that he had been dropped by his representation 'due to this interaction.'
'The suggestion that I was dropped by my representation due to this interaction is false. My decision to part ways was a long term career decision that was not shaped by short term motivations,' he said. 'I believe in taking accountability for my actions; I made a mistake, I apologized and have learned a valuable life lesson.'
He concluded: 'I remain grateful for the incredible work of our cast, crew and supporters on The Apprentice, and I hope the focus stays on their achievements.'
Abbasi's The Apprentice, which had been nominated for two awards at the 2025 Golden Globes, will again compete at the 2025 Oscars in the acting categories.
Sebastian Stan — who leads the film as a young Donald Trump — is in contention for Best Actor, while Jeremy Strong — who stars as political fixer and Trump's former mentor Roy Cohn — is among the Best Supporting Actor nominees.
The film, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last May, was later hit with a cease and desist letter from Trump's attorneys, who sought to prevent its release.
'We filed a lawsuit to address the blatantly false assertions from these pretend filmmakers,' Steven Cheung, Trump's campaign chief spokesperson, said in a statement shared with The Independent at the time.
'This garbage is pure fiction which sensationalizes lies that have been long debunked. As with the illegal Biden trials, this is election interference by Hollywood elites, who know that President Trump will retake the White House and beat their candidate of choice because nothing they have done has worked. This 'film' is pure malicious defamation, should not see the light of day.'
While it initially faced difficulty securing a destributor, the movie was eventually picked up by Briarcliff Entertainment and released in theaters ahead of the 2024 election.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
22 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Donald Trump vetoed Israeli plan to kill Iran's supreme leader
The Israelis informed the Trump administration in recent days that it had developed a credible plan to kill Mr Khamenei. After being briefed on the plan, the White House made clear to Israeli officials that Mr Trump was opposed to the Israelis making the move. The Trump administration is desperate to keep Israel's military operation aimed at decapitating Iran's nuclear program from exploding into an even more expansive conflict and saw the plan to kill Mr Khamenei as a move that would enflame the conflict and potentially destabilise the region. Asked on Sunday about the plan during an interview on Fox News Channel's Special Report with Bret Baier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not directly address whether the White House rejected the plan. 'But I can tell you, I think that we do what we need to do, we'll do what we need to do. And I think the United States knows what is good for the United States,' Mr Netanyahu said. Mr Netanyahu's office declined to comment on the reports. Mr Trump's rejection of the proposal was first reported by Reuters. It comes as the president issued a stark warning to Iran against retaliating on US targets in the Middle East while also predicting that Israel and Iran would 'soon' make a deal to end their escalating conflict. Mr Trump in an early morning social meeting posting said the United States 'had nothing to do with the attack on Iran' as Israel and Iran traded missile attacks for the third straight day. 'The U.S. had nothing to do with the attack on Iran, tonight. If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the U.S. Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before. However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and… — The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 15, 2025 Iran, however, has said that it would hold the US, which has provided Israel with much of its deep arsenal of weaponry, for its backing of Israel. Israel targeted Iran's Defence Ministry headquarters in Tehran and sites it alleged were associated with Iran's nuclear program, while Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defences and slammed into buildings deep inside the country. Mr Trump said: 'If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US armed forces will come down on you at levels never seen before.' Hours later, the US president took to social media again to predict that 'Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal'. The US president made the claim that he has built a track record for de-escalating conflicts, and that he would get Israel and Iran to cease hostilities 'just like I got India and Pakistan to' after the two countries' recent cross-border confrontation. Mr Trump also pointed to efforts by his administration during his first term to mediate disputes between Serbia and Kosovo and Egypt and Ethiopia. 'Likewise, we will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran!' Mr Trump said. 'Many calls and meetings now taking place. I do a lot, and never get credit for anything, but that's OK, the PEOPLE understand. MAKE THE MIDDLE EAST GREAT AGAIN!' The growing conflict between Israel and Iran is testing Mr Trump, who ran on a promise to quickly end the brutal wars in Gaza and Ukraine and build a foreign policy that more broadly favours steering clear of foreign conflicts. Mr Trump has struggled to find an endgame to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. And after criticising President Joe Biden during last year's campaign for preventing Israel from carrying out strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, Mr Trump found himself making the case to the Israelis to give diplomacy a chance. His administration's push on Tehran to give up its nuclear program came after the US and other world powers reached a long-term, comprehensive nuclear agreement in 2015 that limited Tehran's enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Mr Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday about the growing Israel-Iran conflict, and he is set to travel to Canada for Group of Seven leaders summit where the Mideast crisis will loom large over his talks with the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan and the European Union.
Scottish Sun
29 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Iran launches 3rd night of strikes as Netanyahu warns war could lead to ‘regime change' in Tehran
WAR ZONE Iran launches 3rd night of strikes as Netanyahu warns war could lead to 'regime change' in Tehran Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) IRAN has launched another blistering set of missiles into Israel as the Middle East faces a third night of carnage. Benjamin Netanyahu said just before the latest blitz that Iran is now "very weak" as he warned of an impending "regime change" in Tehran. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Smoke can be seen billowing above Haifa after Iran's latest missile blitz Credit: Getty 5 Missiles launched from Iran tonight being intercepted by Israel Credit: Reuters 5 Iranian residents have abandoned their cars in droves as they attempt to get out of Tehran Credit: AFP 5 The aftermath of today's strikes on Tehran Credit: IRNA 5 Israelis have remained upbeat despite rushing to take shelter underground tonight Credit: Shutterstock Editorial Israel successfully blasted numerous Iranian targets today but Tehran Iran fired back tonight with a barrage of around 30 missiles targeting central Israel and Jerusalem. But the retaliatory attacks have done little to restore much faith among Iranian locals who have spent the past three days awaiting the next Israeli blitz. Chaos erupted in Tehran today as civilians began to flee the Iranian capital amid car bombings and relentless Israeli air strikes. A CNN correspondent based in Tehran has now reported people becoming increasingly more stressed and panicking amid the high intensity attacks. Pictures show hundreds of cars gridlocked on roads as they try to flee the capital city. Local media reports heavy damage was caused to Tehran's urban infrastructure. Many buildings were seen destroyed in various parts of the city. The strikes are also said to have obliterated an aircraft repair centre, and targeted the city's famous Valiasr Square. A slew of car bombings were also reported, which the Iranian media has blamed in Israel. Tel Aviv has denied setting off these bombs. Netanyahu told Fox News in an interview that Iranian civilians are now growing tired of the current regime. The Israeli PM claims the current leadership doesn't "have the people", and says "80 per cent of the people" want to overthrow it. Israeli officials have even said Iran's theocratic dictator Khamenei is not "off limits" from being targeted in the airstrikes. There is now growing concerns that the US may be drawn into the raging conflict. Donald Trump told ABC News network that it remains possible he will become involved at some point if strikes continue. He warned Tehran would experience "the full strength" of the US military if it attacks the US bases in the Middle East. Iran and Israel sit on the brink of a full-scale war after Tel Aviv accused Tehran of trying to develop a nuclear bomb. Stay up to date with the latest on Israel vs Iran with The Sun's live blog below...
Daily Mail
31 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Macron sends blunt Trump a message as he lands in Greenland ahead of G7
French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a blunt message to Donald Trump by stopping in Greenland Sunday en route to the G7 – a massive territory the U.S. president says the nation 'needs.' Macron stopped in Nuuk, the same city visited by Donald Trump, Jr. and Vice President JD Vance in separate stops that alarmed some locals who favor moves toward independence or continued association with Denmark. And the French president, eager to flex his own as a European leader as Trump pulls back rhetorically from European allies and pivots away from Ukraine, did not hold back in his public comments. 'I don't think that´s something to be done between allies,' Macron said on a brief visit where he met Danish PM Mette Frederiksen and Greenland's PM Jens-Frederik Nielsen. 'It´s important to show that Denmark and Europe are committed to this territory, which has very high strategic stakes and whose territorial integrity must be respected,' Marcon added. Macron's visit comes as Trump prepares to land in a country where locals are equally adamant against his call to make Canada the 51st U.S. state. ''I don't think he's playing around. I think he has intent around it. I think I think he's smart enough to know that we need them more than they need us, and he's willing to do whatever it takes,' local electrical contractor Curtis Reynard told the Daily Mail. With great powers scrambling for influence in the Arctic, Macron has also said the deep seas are not 'up for grabs.' Trump has been blunt in his claims about the need to obtain Greenland, which has stores of rare earth minerals under its permafrost and a strategic location between North America and Europe. 'We need Greenland for national security and international security,' Trump said in late March as the situation escalated. 'So we'll, I think, we'll go as far as we have to go,' Trump added. 'We need Greenland. And the world needs us to have Greenland, including Denmark. Denmark has to have us have Greenland. And, you know, we'll see what happens. But if we don't have Greenland, we can't have great international security.' 'I view it from a security standpoint, we have to be there,' said Trump. Last week, Denmark's parliament approved U.S. military bases on Danish soil, explanding a 2023 agreement. Denmarks PM has said Greenland 'will never, ever be a piece of property that can be bought by just anyone.' And early this year amid the pressure Denmark said it would pour $2 billion into Arctic defense. Last week Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers the U.S. had plans to invade Greenland or Panama if necessary. 'Our job at the Defense Department is to have plans for any particular contingency,' Hegseth said under questioning at a hearing. 'I think the American people would want the Pentagon to have plans for any particular contingency,' Hegseth added. The remarks prompted pushback from Alaska Senate Repulbican Lisa Murkowski. She told the Daily Mail she didn't 'think the Trump administration would like to buy Greenland once they realize what the price of Greenland would be.' Macron's trip comes after Trump and first lady Melania Trump viwed U.S. military might during a 250th anniversary Army parade that fell on Trump's birthday. It was during a trip to France to watch Bastille Day celebrations with Macon that Trump got the idea for a parade in DC.
