Sebastian Stan to play young Donald Trump in The Apprentice

Sebastian Stan is to play a young Donald Trump in The Apprentice.

The 41-year-old actor has been cast as the former US president in a new biopic from the acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Ali Abbasi while Maria Bakalova and Succession star Jeremy Strong are also set to feature in prominent roles.

The Apprentice has been billed an exploration of both power and ambition and will chart Trump's attempts to build his real estate business in New York during the 1970s and 1980s, as well as delving into his relationship with the infamous attorney Roy Cohn.

Sources have told Deadline that Strong will portray Cohn, with Borat Subsequent Moviefilm actress Bakalova taking on the part of Trump's first wife Ivana.

The picture is being written by Gabriel Sherman, whose biography of the disgraced Fox News chief Roger Ailes The Loudest Voice in the Room inspired the TV series The Loudest Voice — which starred Russell Crowe as Ailes.

The Apprentice is the latest chapter in Sebastian's versatile acting career — which includes the role of the Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as well as playing Motley Crue rocker Tommy Lee in the Hulu miniseries Pam and Tommy.

The star recalled his "pretty wild" transformation into the drummer and explained how he only saw co-star Lily James — who played Baywatch icon Pamela — in character for the first time after filming had wrapped.

Sebastian told Entertainment Tonight: "It's really wild, with Lily, because the first time I saw her as herself was actually at the end of the shoot five months later, and I was like, 'Who are you?' That's when we actually formally met."

The Avengers: Endgame star explained that the shoot was so demanding as it took several hours for the pair to get into character.

He said: "I think it took two hours for myself and then three hours for Lily almost every morning. Then you pile that on to a 12-hour day and it just definitely gets interesting by the end."

ALSO READ: Elon Musk biopic rights clinched by A24, Darren Aronofsky to direct: Source