The Daily Beast, citing a "person close to the president" and "two people with direct knowledge of the situation," reports that Trump has casually slipped into conversation lines like “How would you like to see The Apprentice come back?” and “Remember The Apprentice?” in recent weeks as he begins dealing with the reality of his post-presidency. "The president has also bragged about how much of a ratings draw and money-maker the series was for him and creator and Trump pal Mark Burnett, and that if he wanted to, he could do it again. Whether a network would have him is another question," reports The Daily Beast's Lachlan Cartwright and Asawin Suebsaeng. "The Apprentice aired formerly on NBC. But that was an era before Trump was president. And the controversy of his time in office will likely follow him after he leaves. Also unclear is to what extent Trump and Burnett have made contact this month. But Burnett has been talking up the prospect and has told associates he sees a revived Apprentice as a potential huge money spinner, according to a person familiar with his thinking." Burnett was the subject of a New York Times story in October saying he "has kind of gone bust" with his TV projects in recent years as chairman of MGM Television. "Mark’s an opportunist," a source tells The Daily Beast. "Trump was his meal ticket before and he’s keen to bring the show back to life, especially in the face of the disaster MGM has become."
TOPICS: Donald Trump, The Apprentice, Mark Burnett, MGM Television, Reality TV, Trump Presidency