Trump Movie ‘Appearances’: 5 Times ‘The Donald’ Was The Ultimate Film Villain
Donald Trump movie sightings have surged in online popularity since the GOP frontrunner and probable presidential candidate first announced he was running.
Actually, to be fair, it wasn’t so much the announcement that got Internet searches up as how he’s managed to stay in the news with one controversial statement after another.
In fact, the more controversy the man invites, the more often he is compared to some kind of super villain by those who oppose him.
As it turns out, there have been a number of films over the years that have, either purposefully or accidentally, used Trump as a movie villain. Here are five.
5. Al Capone, The Untouchables
It may not be entirely fair to call Al Capone one of the five Trump movie villains on this list as he was a real-life character who, unfortunately, did many of the horrible things that Robert DeNiro does in the movie; nevertheless, his need for power and control of Chicago is reminiscent of the same zeal Donald has shown in his bids to expand his brand throughout the country and the world, and it is particularly reflected in his campaign for the White House.
Most Trumpian moment:
4. Daniel Plainview, There Will Be Blood
Daniel Plainview, the protagonist (and antagonist) of There Will Be Blood has a drive to succeed at all costs in much the same way that “The Donald” has prescribed for America in relation to other countries. When Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis) speaks, you can hear the same greed-for-country “generosity” that Trump has used to connect with his nationalist followers. This makes Plainview a natural Trump movie villain addition.
Most Trumpian moment:
3. Gordon Gekko, Wall Street
Gekko (Michael Douglas) popularized the line “Greed is good” in Oliver Stone’s takedown of Wall Street in the titular 1987 film. How can you say something like that and not be considered a Trump movie villain? The clip below comes from that iconic speech, but it’s so much more than “Greed is good.” You can hear the humble-brag Donald is known for coming through loud and clear.
Most Trumpian moment:
2. Greg Stillson, The Dead Zone
Hotshot conservative politician Greg Stillson is the central antagonist in Stephen King’s The Dead Zone novel. He was brought to life by Martin Sheen in the 1983 film of the same name. Stillson and Christopher Walken have an encounter in the movie that most of the anti-Trump crowd can relate to in which Walken foresees a horrific nuclear holocaust when he makes physical contact with Stillson. That’s not the clip you’ll see below.
Rather, it’s a scene where Sheen exhibits a Trump-like gift-of-gab in schmoozing a donor. With the exception of the last line — “Most importantly, I need your money,” Trump is self-funding after all — this sounds exactly like something Trump might say.
Most Trumpian moment:
1. Biff Tannen, Back to the Future
No list of Donald Trump movie villains would be complete without including the villain from all three Back to the Future films, Biff Tannen. From his introduction in the first movie, Tannen is seen as a simple, lug-headed bully, who succeeds in life through his willingness to take from others forcefully.
The writer of Back to the Future Part II, Bob Gale, explains the Biff-as-Trump movie villain relation in an interview with the Daily Beast from October 2015.
“You watch Part II again and there’s a scene where Marty confronts Biff in his office and there’s a huge portrait of Biff on the wall behind Biff, and there’s one moment where Biff kind of stands up and he takes exactly the same pose as the portrait? Yeah.”
Also, Biff reinvests his earnings from a 27-story casino to insert himself into the Republican party’s politics and “encourages every citizen to call him ‘America’s greatest living folk hero,'” the Beast states.
Most Trumpian moment:
So there you have it, readers: the 5 most Trumpian Donald Trump movie villains. Did any get left off the list? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
[Image via The Dead Zone screen grab]
