The reality TV show that once starred Donald Trump before he became a household name — and later the 45th and 47th president — may be getting rebooted.
Amazon is reportedly weighing the potential revival of “The Apprentice,” which could include Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, as host, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
Executives at the company have internally discussed renewing the show, which ran 15 seasons on NBC from 2004 to 2017. Talks are still in the early stages, as Amazon has not formally approached the Trump family.
Amazon MGM Studios head Mike Hopkins was involved in talks about the reboot proposal around the time Mr. Trump was being sworn in for his second term, according to the outlet.
The series’ library, acquired through the MGM deal in 2022, gives Amazon rights to the show, and if a reboot moves forward, it would stream on Prime Video.
An Amazon spokesperson said that the show is not in active development, and a potential host has not been selected.
“Since our acquisition of MGM, we have had preliminary internal discussions about what’s next for ‘The Apprentice’ as a property,” the spokesperson told the Journal.
In the show that cemented Mr. Trump’s fame, contestants competed for a one-year, $250,000 contract to manage one of his companies, often facing challenges that tested their business skills. The show, which famously culminated in his “You’re fired!” catchphrase, portrayed him as a billionaire mogul.
Mr. Trump hosted the show for 14 seasons and held the title of executive producer before Arnold Schwarzenegger hosted the 15th and final season.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who retired as CEO in 2021 but stayed on as executive chairman, has moved from an adversarial relationship with the president during his first term to a more stable working relationship during his second.
His company bought the rights to the “Melania” documentary of first lady Melania Trump for $40 million, which followed her during the weeks leading up to her husband’s second term. That price tag was 3 times higher than the largest competing offer.
The documentary — a box-office bomb that critics dubbed an “infomercial” — was the first move for Amazon to push a show that featured the Trump family. A revival of “The Apprentice” would mark the second.
