The Apprentice Is Back: Amazon Taps Donald Trump Jr to Lead the Reboot

Well, the Trump family media machine just keeps rolling, and no matter how much you think you've seen it all, turns out there's always room for more. Just when you thought Melania's unauthorized documentary and the parade of Trump-brand content was as weird as it gets, now Amazon is sniffing around for a way to give Donald Trump Jr. his own show — and they're eyeing a revival of The Apprentice. Yes, that The Apprentice.

Amazon Wants a Piece of Don Jr. TV… For Reasons?

Here’s where things get particularly Hollywood-backroom: Rumor has it Amazon, since scooping up MGM, has been quietly poking around for a project to showcase Trump Jr. A Don Jr. fishing or hunting show was apparently on the table at Discovery (I guess if you want to see big-game photo ops and spray tans in camo). But now, reviving The Apprentice — the original "You’re Fired" schadenfreude fest — is the front-runner.

An Amazon spokesperson basically tried to keep a lid on the rumor mill, saying:

"Since our acquisition of MGM, we have had preliminary internal discussions about what’s next for The Apprentice as a property. The show is not in active development, and any reporting on details of the show or names of potential hosts would be purely speculative."

Translation: lots of meetings, zero greenlights, but don’t be surprised if Don Jr. ends up on your screen flinging catchphrases and trying his hand at the family’s favorite activity — pretending to hire people.

Rewinding: The Trump Apprentice Playbook

For those younger (or lucky) enough to have avoided the original run, The Apprentice aired from 2004-2015, starring Donald Trump playing a fantasy version of himself — a supposed business giant actually famous for his inherited fortune and famous bankruptcies. The show was slick reality TV spin, complete with boardroom drama and catchphrases (fun fact: Trump tried and failed to trademark “You’re Fired”, a business decision as doomed as his casinos).

Even Martha Stewart got a spinoff, but Trump’s version always leaned hardest into mythmaking — not reality. Producer Bill Bruitt pulled back the curtain in a Slate column in 2024 and did not mince words:

"The Apprentice was an instant success in another way too. It elevated Donald J. Trump from sleazy New York tabloid hustler to respectable household name. In the show, he appeared to demonstrate impeccable business instincts and unparalleled wealth, even though his businesses had barely survived multiple bankruptcies and faced yet another when he was cast. By carefully misleading viewers about Trump—his wealth, his stature, his character, and his intent—the competition reality show set about an American fraud that would balloon beyond its creators’ wildest imaginations."

For my money, The Apprentice is less about business than about self-obsession. Trump’s need to be a pop culture mainstay was legendary. (Remember, the only reason he’s in Home Alone 2 is because he wouldn’t let them shoot in Trump Tower unless he could awkwardly wave at the camera.)

The Melania Movie and the Ratner Mess

You can’t make this up — Melania Trump got her own documentary, which just about no one asked for. The movie had all the hallmarks of a PR misfire: most press was locked out of the premiere, and infamous director Brett Ratner was somehow at the helm. Despite the film's supposedly "record-breaking" opening, it brought in over $13 million against a $40 million budget.

Does anyone care about the money? Probably not, since the whole thing looks like a big, shiny favor to keep Trump Sr. happy — sort of a cinematic fruit basket for the patriarch. And let's be real — there's no actual audience for this except the inner MAGA circle.

Trump's Mentors, Media, and a Coming Wave of Nostalgia Content

If you want to go really deep into the roots of Trump world, you’ve got to mention Roy Cohn — the legendary fixer and lawyer whose dark resume included the Rosenbergs case, defending McCarthy, buddying up with J. Edgar Hoover, mob reps, and covering for predatory priests. A new film called The Apprentice just dropped on Prime Video (yeah, really), and dives into the Trump-Cohn relationship. If you’re looking for material, Pulitzer-winner Kai Bird (the same guy who co-wrote the Oppenheimer biography that inspired the Nolan film) has a new book on Cohn that’s bound to set off a few more fireworks.

What Now? (Because There’s Always a What Now)

• Melania’s documentary quietly fizzles, losing money but serving its own political PR purpose.
• Amazon circles The Apprentice with Don Jr. in mind, but nothing official yet.
• If The Apprentice does return, expect more myth-making — this time with new Trump faces and, probably, more weird moments.
• Serious books and documentaries are starting to go deeper on Trump’s network, especially the Cohn era, for people who want more than just headlines.

In short: the Trump family isn’t just staying in the headlines — they’re actively trying to reboot their TV era, nostalgia be damned. If you’re holding your breath for an announcement about The (Nepo) Apprentice, odds are you won’t have to wait much longer.

I’ll keep watching (so you don’t have to), and let you know if Don Jr. upgrades from cameos to crowning himself “the boss.”