The Apprentice: The Trump Biopic's Wildest Moments Were Even Crazier in Real Life

“There have been reports over the years that Trump in the '80s took these pills, which are essentially amphetamines, and they give you a kind of manic energy,” Sherman said. “That was always one of the explanations for why he got involved in this deal-making. After he completed Trump Tower, he ended up buying all those casinos, starting the airline (Trump Shuttle), buying the yacht (Trump Princess), buying Mar-a-Lago, buying the Plaza Hotel and basically going bankrupt within six years. I felt like this was one of the themes of the film – the more Trump gains power, the more he loses touch with his own humanity. I imagined the diet pills as him trying to develop the superpower of never having to sleep.”

In The lost tycoon, Hurt reports that “Donald was so pleased with the results” of the pills that he began recommending them to his brother Robert, various friends, and “famous acquaintances such as…” Diana Ross.“The pills, Hurt wrote, “made the already hectic Manhattan mogul a terror both at home and in the office.” (Trump denied the claims in Hurt’s book at the time.)

In The apprentice, His pill-taking causes Trump to suffer from erectile dysfunction. Because of this unfortunate side effect, the future president has stopped taking diet pills. “That’s what drives him to become a plastic surgeon,” Sherman says. “The diet pills aren't working, so he has to find another solution to his weight problems.”

The obvious solution, however, is not for Trump. When a doctor in the film suggests exercising, Trump responds, “You know, it'll kill you.” This, too, is a documented Trump belief.

Trump's alleged plastic surgery – which he has denied – was first detailed by Ivana in her 1990 divorce statement. According to reports, both the liposuction and scalp reduction surgery were performed by Ivana's plastic surgeon. Steven Hoefflin– who also operated on Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Joan Rivers. The scalp reduction surgery, which was performed in the film to hide a bald spot on the back of Trump's head, was considered “a high-risk procedure,” according to Sherman. “It was very risky and the doctors recommended not doing it.”