There’s a scene in the new Donald Trump biopic that shocked audiences

In the new Donald Trump biopic “The Apprentice,” there is a scene in which the young Trump rapes his then-wife Ivana, as some critics and viewers describe it.

In the film, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday night, Ivana Trump (played by Maria Bakalova) shows Donald (Sebastian Stan) a book about the female orgasm. According to Variety, Donald then tells Ivana he’s not attracted to her, throws her to the floor, penetrates her and says, “Is that your G-spot?” Did I find it?”

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the scene caused a stir among Cannes audiences. Many reviews and articles about the film describe it as a rape scene, although not all of them are. Some viewers who saw it at the Cannes Film Festival told Variety they thought it was a depiction of “rape” or “sexual assault.”

Ivana Trump accused Donald of rape in a 1990 divorce statement. Donald denied the accusation and Ivana later said the incident left her feeling “violated” but not raped “in the literal or criminal sense.” She died in 2022.

In May, a jury found Trump guilty of sexual assault against writer E. Jean Carroll. In her 2019 book, What Do We Need Men For, Carroll wrote that Trump raped her in a New York dressing room in 1996.

“The Apprentice” has been criticized for doing too much to humanize Trump, who served as president from 2017 to 2021 and has been charged with four different crimes. At least 23 women have accused him of various sexual misconduct, including sexual harassment and sexual assault.

Ali Abbasi directed the film, which traces Trump’s career as a real estate entrepreneur in the 1970s and 1980s. At a press conference, he said that the film is about deconstructing mythological characters and giving them human traits. “The most despicable monster you can imagine… at some point also liked a dog or fell in love with someone or was nice to someone,” Abbasi said.

Abba’s representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Emails to representatives for Gabriel Sherman, the film’s writer, were not immediately returned.

Trump’s campaign said Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, would sue the filmmakers “to denounce the patently false claims.”

Cannes jury president Greta Gerwig said she watches each film “with an open mind and an open heart.”

“I don’t want to make any assumptions about what ‘The Apprentice’ is, but I’m really excited about it,” she said. “I’m looking forward to all the films.”

Need help? Visit RAINN’s National online hotline for sexual assault cases or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center website.