The Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova was asked to play Ivana Trump for the 2022 film The Apprentice, an experience that fascinated her, amidst her own
The Bulgarian actress Maria Bakalova was asked to play Ivana Trump for the 2022 film The Apprentice, an experience that fascinated her, amidst her own career highs and lows.
When she was cast, Bakalova was already filming another project, but she was given a day off, which she used to prepare for the role by researching and studying Ivana’s behavior, mannerisms, and hairstyles. She spent hours browsing through photos of Ivana from the 1970s and 1980s, trying to channel her spirit.
“I think I was a bit of a clownish, feeling a little bit over-the-top, but it was just so much fun to try to get into her skin,” Bakalova reflected. “I was exhausted afterwards, but it was a fun experience.”
The meeting with director Ali Abbasi, scheduled for the next day, helped her solidify her understanding of the character. They discussed people’s experiences growing up in post-communist countries, like Bakalova herself, who was born and raised in Bulgaria, and Ivana, who was from Czechoslovakia. This shared background shaped their inner world, thoughts, and values.
Ivana, a competitive skier, had gained international experience, allowing her to travel outside Czechoslovakia in the late 1960s. By the mid-1990s, when Bakalova was born, Bulgaria was no longer a socialist republic, but traveling abroad was still limited. As a child, Bakalova, a competitive singer, got to travel to various European competitions, which opened her eyes and instilled a sense of independence.
Bakalova’s breakthrough role as Tutar, the daughter of Borat Sagdiyev, in the 2020 mockumentary Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, earned her an Oscar nomination. Despite this early success, her agents warned her not to get her hopes up about landing the role of Ivana, as higher-profile US actors were also being considered.
What she found valuable was that Abbasi gave a chance to an Eastern European actress to compete, leading to a diverse casting opportunity. In a Vanity Fair piece, the film’s screenwriter, Gabriel Sherman, detailed the obstacles they faced: the difficulty in humanizing Trump, which the actors didn’t want to do; the refusal of studios and streamers to finance the film; Trump’s travel ban, affecting the Iranian director’s immigration to the US; and the global pandemic.
The Apprentice’s major investor, a film executive with ties to a Trump donor, reportedly threatened to terminate the film due to a rape scene, which was later retracted by Ivana, but not before a cease-and-desist letter. “Hollywood fashions itself as a community of truth-tellers,” wrote Sherman, “but here they were, running from a movie to prepare for a Trump presidency.”
Bakalova says she trusted Sherman and didn’t question the inclusion of the alleged rape scene, which is pivotal in humanizing both characters. “When you dive deeper into a human being, there are always good and bad sides, and there are always decisions you make based on circumstances, people you surround yourself with, that change your point of view… I think we should step away from the idea of demonizing people or creating idols, because people are complex.”
When questioned about Trump being humanized, she noted, “When you humanize someone, you don’t demonize them completely, and you don’t put them on a pedestal. People are complex, and they have different sides, and there are moments where they will do something that is not great.”
The film’s release was delayed, but it will finally hit theaters on October 18. “I don’t think it’s coincidental that it’s coming out around the election,” she said. “It’s not a political film; it’s not a hit piece. It will not change opinions, but it’s a film about human beings and their complexities. Our biggest privilege in a democracy is to share our voices and have an opinion, one way or another.”
Bakalova’s own background includes her childhood in Burgas, a coastal city in Bulgaria, where her mother was a nurse and her father was a chemist. She was the only child. Growing up, they were considered middle-class, but she recalls few people in Bulgaria had much, and the concept of wealth was limited.
Her love for the arts started with music; her father would play the guitar at home, and she would listen to rock music and want to emulate those musicians. However, she stopped playing the guitar when she was 12, after damaging her voice. This started her interest in reading and acting. Her father would drive her to the city for auditions.
Bakalova discovered the Danish avant-garde New Wave movement, Dogme 95, and decided to fly to Copenhagen with her parents to meet with Lars von Trier’s production company, Zentropa. They were turned away, but she vowed to learn Danish and return. She was then cast in a Bulgarian-French film, Women Do Cry.
The character of Tutar in Borat was a game-changer. She was given a vision board to infuse her character with a life-changing feminist trajectory and had to pull off embarrassing scenes with real people, including a pro-life campaigner and a Republican donors’ event.
As for the alleged rape scene in The Apprentice, she laughed, “I don’t know how I did it. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to do it again. It’s so strange, and I think that’s why Sacha’s work is so brilliant. He challenges people. It’s like a social experiment of how far can you go?” It was “definitely difficult” but felt supported by director and co-writer Sasha Baron Cohen.
Floating questions and answers:
* What is The Apprentice about?
The Apprentice is a film about Donald Trump, specifically his early life and his first marriage to Ivana Trump.
* Why did Maria Bakalova choose to take on the role?
Bakalova was drawn to the project because of the complexities of humanizing Trump and the unique opportunity to portray a woman as nuanced and multi-dimensional.
* How did Bakalova prepare for the role?
Bakalova researched Ivana Trump’s life, studied her mannerisms and hairstyles, and worked with director Ali Abbasi to understand the character.
* What challenges did the film face?
The film faced numerous obstacles, including the difficulty in humanizing Trump, the refusal of studios and streamers to finance the project, and the global pandemic.
* Is the film meant to humanize Trump?
Bakalova explains that humanizing Trump doesn’t mean making excuses for his actions or promoting an ideology; it means understanding the complexities of human beings and the situations that shape their decisions.
* How can people access support for sexual assault and rape?
Global helplines include RAINN (0800 656-4673) in the US and Rape Crisis (0808 500 2222 in the UK, 1800 737 732 in Australia, and 0808 801 0302 in Scotland and Northern Ireland).
Conclusions:
The Apprentice is a film that challenges the audience to humanize Donald Trump and explore the complexities of his life. With Maria Bakalova’s performance, the film sheds light on the complexities of Ivana Trump and her experiences.
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