‘The Apprentice’ Director Ali Abbasi Dropped by CAA, Management 360 Following Groping Accusation

Acclaimed director Ali Abbasi has lost his high profile U.S. representatives following a groping allegation by an A-list star.

“The Apprentice” filmmaker is no longer a client at CAA and Management 360, Variety has confirmed, following events that transpired after this year’s Golden Globes. A Friday report from Deadline said Abbasi was dismissed after allegedly groping an unnamed actor at what was billed as CAA’s Globes after party.

Sources told Variety the incident occurred at famed Los Angeles hotel Chateau Marmont and was not an official CAA gathering. Abbasi’s accuser is also repped by CAA, the report said. A representative for Abbasi had no further comment on the matter. They denied the outlet’s report that law firm Granderson des Rochers had dropped Abbasi, saying he’d never retained their services in the first place.

Abbasi and “The Apprentice,” a film about Donald Trump’s rise to power as a real estate mogul in the ’80s and his insidious mentorship by the lawyer Roy Cohn, have been award season underdogs this year. After a successful premiere in Cannes, mainstream distributors wouldn’t touch the film as Trump barreled toward a second term as president. Sebastian Stan as Trump has received numerous awards for his portrayal, as has his co-star Jeremy Strong for playing Cohn. Both men were nominated for Oscars.