Donald Trump had a banner year in 2005. He married his current-wife, Melania, in a lavish ceremony in Palm Beach, Florida. HIs new reality series, The Apprentice, was a certified hit. And ABC produced and aired a two-hour long melodrama based on his life.
The movie, Trump Unauthorized, starred actor Louis Ferreira as The Donald, and was based on author Gwenda Blair's biography of Trump and his family. The film heavily played up the drama of Trump's personal life.
Although Trump initially threatened to "sue their asses off" when the movie was announced, it appears, according to the New York Post, that Trump came around to liking the movie, calling it a "great compliment."
"Having a two-hour movie on network television while you're still living is sort of wild," he told the Post in 2005. "You're supposed to be gone for that to happen."
Melania also told the Post she enjoyed the film, despite the movie's handling of Trump's frequent womanizing with Marla Maples (his second wife) for years when he was still married to his first (Ivana).
"I think it was fun to watch, but it was nothing new. His life is an open book and there were no surprises," she said to the Post.
The TV movie predictably garnered negative reviews.
"It fails to get under that famous mop and expose what makes Trump tick — perhaps because there's limited evidence of depth beyond the bluster," read a Variety review. "Fun in a campy way, the telefilm has its moments, but it won't inspire many to say, 'You're TiVo-ed!'
