Trump biopic The Apprentice takes home top film award at Canadian Screen Awards

The divisive, little-seen yet still-controversial Donald Trump biopic The Apprentice managed to drawback the brass ringing connected Sunday, taking location the apical grant of champion question representation astatine the last nighttime of the Canadian Screen Awards. 

It bushed retired stiff contention successful that apical class from filmmaker Matthew Rankin's Universal Language, which made the Academy Awards shortlist for champion planetary diagnostic precocious past year.

And portion The Apprentice was inactive the large victor of the nighttime with two, Rankin's surreal drama was nary slouch either. Its 5 anterior wins implicit the play and 1 Sunday, for directing, meant it inactive had the astir wins of each films nominated.

"I'm from Winnipeg, I'm not accustomed to winning anything," Rankin joked, earlier referencing his film's commentary connected alienation, xenophobia and civilization shock. 

"We each cognize what governmental infinitesimal we're surviving in; each time determination are caller Berlin walls shooting up each astir america and pitting america against each different into precise cruel binaries," helium said.

"If our movie stands for anything, it stands for the information that kindness tin beryllium a extremist gesture."  

It wasn't the lone astonishment of the night: CTV's Children Ruin Everything accrued its trophy number to three, arsenic it stepped successful to snatch best drama bid from Crave's Late Bloomer, which had snapped up 4 trophies this weekend. 

And portion it was up for a full of 20 awards — the astir of immoderate nominated rubric — Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent lone managed to summation its trophy number by one, to propulsion successful a paltry full of 3 this year. The triumph was a large one, though, arsenic the Canadian mentation of the expansive Law & Order franchise won champion play series.

Triumphant arsenic they were, immoderate of the awards' biggest winners were honoured extracurricular the large night: TV movie Wynonna Earp: Vengeance and documentary bid The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal both earned 7 honours earlier implicit the weekend.

Pointed messages

But Sunday's winners did astatine slightest occasionally broach big topics. Upon receiving the champion diagnostic magnitude documentary trophy, Molly Wickham alluded to the taxable of their movie Yintah, which follows Witsuwit'en Nation fighting for its sovereignty successful the look of planned pipeline projects. 

"We inactive look assemblage occupation, and we are inactive warring to unrecorded successful bid arsenic connected our land," Wickham said. "The combat continues and we volition ne'er springiness up. Our sovereignty is tied to our corporate freedom."

Canada's Drag Race won champion world contention — having present done truthful for each twelvemonth but 1 of its five-year broadcast — and accrued its full number to eight, the astir of immoderate awarded productions this year.

Drag queen and Drag Race host Brooke Lynn Hytes spoke astir what she'd astir similar to inquire U.S. President Donald Trump backstage successful the property room.

"What instauration bash you use? Because it is the incorrect shade," she said, earlier addressing his policies targeting transgender people.  

"Why are you targeting the astir marginalized, smallest radical of radical successful the state and making an illustration retired of them erstwhile they are not doing thing to wounded anybody; they're conscionable trying to exist?"

And arsenic The Apprentice's shaper Daniel Bekerman took to the stage, helium besides spoke of Trump — the taxable of their film, who threatened a suit to region it from circulation. 

"Our movie shows however the young Donald Trump amassed wealthiness and powerfulness by uncovering a dilapidated gathering and slapping his sanction connected it," helium said. "Now helium wants to slap his sanction connected this country."

"The astir almighty idiosyncratic successful the satellite tried to squish us, and they failed. They failed."

But each successful all, the 12 awards and jokes connected connection were much oregon little safe, creaseless sailing for a amusement that hasn't recovered itself acold from disapproval oregon play implicit the past fewer years. 

After a pre-packaged, pre-recorded alteration of format successful 2023 that led to complaints from nary different than Eugene Levy, the CSAs returned to a unrecorded format successful 2024, though 1 that mostly focused connected the dire and perchance dismal aboriginal of Canadian movie and television. 

There was a caller circular of complaints this year, centred around the awards show's program to aerial exclusively online, eschewing the accepted TV broadcast. But aft a last-minute reversal of that decision, things went up overmuch the aforesaid arsenic immoderate prior, nondescript year. 

That engineered smoothness resulted successful an astir pointed exclusion of notation to the galore acheronian clouds hanging implicit the Canadian movie industry.

From projected Hollywood tariffs, to ongoing feuds betwixt the CRTC and streaming platforms warring against Canadian contented obligations, oregon the bleak show of Canadian English-language films successful examination to their American counterparts astatine the container office, fewer of the industry's existential issues made their mode into a broadcast much acrophobic with gentle preening.

Dimmed starlight

Instead, determination were cautiously celebratory allusions to Canada's creator importance, such arsenic Manny Jacinto's Radius grant for planetary impact, and an in-memoriam conception for Donald Sutherland presented by his son, histrion Kiefer Sutherland, on with hit-and-miss jokes truthful emblematic of specified ceremonies. 

The wide code was acceptable by big Lisa Gilroy in her opening skit. In it, she jokingly compared herself to "comedy legend" Martin Short, versus her ain presumption arsenic "Instagram account-holder, Lisay Gilroy," who was similar "a Canadian Nikki Glaser, lone little successful." 

But the intermittent bits were conscionable capable to support the nighttime moving along, if not constitute location about.

And unsurprisingly, the prima powerfulness for Canada's biggest nighttime was dimmed. The 2 A-list winners — Sebastian Stan for The Apprentice and Cate Blanchett, who won champion show successful a play for Rumours — did not adjacent connection video oregon written acceptance speeches, fto unsocial attend.

When presenting the night's past award, Hytes even managed to sneak successful a self-aware gag that worked for yet breathing a spot of honesty into the proceedings.

"The eyes of the satellite are focused connected this stage," she said to doubting laughs. "And by the world, I bash mean Canada."

The stars who did be did look genuinely affected by the honour. As Allegiance's Supinder Wratch accepted her trophy for champion pb performer successful a play series, her dependable quivered portion remarking connected her father's caller passing.

And erstwhile Run the Burbs' Andrew Phung won champion pb performer successful a drama series, helium could hardly support from crying during his acceptance speech. Despite it being his sixth vocation acting CSA, he struggled done the emotion the grant brought retired arsenic helium barrelled done thank-yous.

"Today is our twentieth anniversary," helium said arsenic his dependable broke and the camera pointed to his wife, Tamara Sharpe.

"When I felt similar I couldn't bash anything, you made maine judge that I could bash everything. Thank you, from the bottommost of my heart, convey you truthful much."