Daniel Craig and director Rian Johnson talk about ‘Knives Out 3’
Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig reveal how faith and suspense shape Wake Up Dead Man: Knives Out Mystery.
Josh Brolin is reflecting on his friendship with President Donald Trump.
The Wake Up Dead Man star, 57, spoke to The Independent about his relationship with President Trump after they became friends years before the real estate mogul took over the White House.
Brolin and Trump met in 2010, when Trump was just a businessman in New York and Brolin was starring in Oliver Stone’s financial drama “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps,” set in New York. President Trump filmed a scene for the film, but it did not make it into the final cut.
“I’m not scared of Trump, because even if he says he’s going to stay forever, that’s never going to happen,” Brolin told The Independent. “If that happens, I’m going to deal with it in the moment. But I know another guy because we were friends before Trump became president.”
Brolin alluded to concerns that President Trump might try to seek a third term as president, which is prohibited by the 22nd Amendment. Trump told NBC News earlier this year that “a lot of people want me to run for a third term,” and said in October that he “would love to” do so, but later added that it was “clear” he “will not be allowed” to run again in 2028.
“There’s no greater marketing genius than[Trump],” Brolin told The Independent, adding: “He takes the weaknesses of the public and fills them. I think that’s why so many people feel like there’s a mascot in him. I think it’s less about Trump and more about the public and their need for validation.”
In “Wake Up Dead Man,” the third film in the murder mystery “Knives Out” series, Brolin stars as a charismatic priest who creates a cult-like atmosphere at a church in upstate New York. The actor will also play the role of the ruthless TV producer he played opposite Glen Powell in The Running Man.
The Avengers: Infinity War star previously recalled on “In Depth with Graham Bensinger” that he met Trump and they became friends during a 2010 dinner in New York with Trump, Stone, Shia LaBeouf and Melania Trump. In May 2012, President Trump tweeted that Brolin was “my friend” and praised Brolin’s “amazing” performance in the film “Men in Black 3.”
Additionally, during an appearance on “The Late Show” in 2016, Brolin said he had read “a lot” of Trump’s books and was a “huge fan” of Trump, highlighting the then-candidate’s accomplishments as a businessman. “He single-handedly turned Manhattan’s economy around,” Brolin said. “I thought that was very appealing. I think he’s an interesting guy in that way.”
But Brolin told Bensinger in 2024 that the two were “no longer” friends. And on “The Late Show” in 2018, he said that while he “used to take pride” in knowing Trump, he no longer does. “I refuse to believe that Donald Trump is the core version of our American masculinity,” the actor wrote on Instagram in the days leading up to the 2020 presidential election, adding that Trump “has lied over 50,000 documented times.”
Stone recalled that during an appearance at Comic-Con in 2016, President Trump staged a scene of a scrapped “Wall Street.” “At the end of each take,[Trump]jumped up and said, ‘Wasn’t that great?'” the filmmaker said at the time. And I said, “Honestly, no.” His confidence is incredible. ”
