The anecdote made its way to Derek Zoolander himself, Ben Stiller. While at the Nantucket Film Festival (via Page Six), the actor shared his thoughts concerning Donald Trump’s viewpoint: “Trump said it didn’t bomb because it wasn’t funny or anything, but because nobody cares about male models anymore in the zeitgeist. And all I’m thinking is … A) Trump’s right. Maybe we should go a little easier on him on this whole Russia thing. And B) why are you doing this, Chris [Matthews]? Why are you dredging up my pain?”
Trump was only in a few seconds of “Zoolander,” but he’s become inextricably linked with the comedy. Stiller even appeared on “The Daily Beast Podcast” to read some of Trump’s tweets in Derek Zoolander’s voice, including the infamous “stable genius” post. It wouldn’t be the only time he had fun at the former president’s expense. The actor further ridiculed Trump’s inner circle by impersonating former lawyer Michael Cohen on “Saturday Night Live.”
Despite all of the mocking, don’t expect Trump’s cameo in “Zoolander” to be cut any time soon. Stiller has commented that it’s a product of its time, and many things were linked to Trump back in the day. The ex-president’s days of making cameos in major Hollywood productions are likely over, and now, those that occurred remain intriguing time capsules of a bygone era.
