Donald Trump was in “serious talks” to play the President of the United States in 2015’s “Sharkado 3: Oh Hell No!” — two years before the real estate mogul actually became POTUS.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Sarah Palin was the producers’ first choice to play the leader of the free world, but those negotiations fell through. That’s when “Sharknado” star Ian Ziering proposed getting the Donald to play the part after he formed a relationship with Trump while filming “Celebrity Apprentice.”
The future president said yes, and was “thrilled to be asked.”
Gerald Webb, a casting director who worked on the first three “Sharknado” films, said they got “pretty far” with negotiations and there were “serious talks.” A contract was drawn up and sent to his attorney, Michael D. Cohen. However, there was a deafening silence from Trump’s team until they gave a reason for the halt in negotiations.
“Donald’s thinking about making a legitimate run for the presidency, so we’ll get back to you,” Cohen allegedly said, according to The Asylum, the production company behind the films, co-founder David Latt. “This might not be the best time.”
The role was then offered to Mark Cuban as a backup plan, given production time.
“Then we immediately heard from Trump’s lawyer,” Latt said. “He basically said, ‘How dare you? Donald wanted to do this. We’re going to sue you! We’re going to shut the entire show down!’”
“Sharkado 3” starred Ziering, Tara Reid, Frankie Muniz, Ryan Newman and David Hasselhoff. It premiered on Syfy in July 2015.
A spokesperson for Trump has not yet responded to TheWrap’s request for comment.