The White House Made a Schlocky Fake Movie Trailer for Trump-Kim Jong Un Meeting
You may have heard by now that President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had a priv..
You may have heard by now that President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had a private meeting on Tuesday in Singapore, forging what Trump called “a very special bond.” Their summit has been a long-in-the-works spectacle, beginning with the promise of a special commemorative coin and ending with Dennis Rodman, a regular visitor to North Korea, providing commentary about the meeting on CNN—all while wearing a MAGA hat and a shirt promoting marijuana cryptocurrency. The whole affair has been political sensory overload, never mind the fact that it could lead to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula—a grand promise that diplomats and State Department staffers doubt will come to pass.
But if theres room in your heart for one more insane detail from this meeting, let us turn your attention to the Hollywood-esque trailer that the White House made in advance of the summit—featuring Trump and Kim as superheroes with the fate of the world in their hands.
The trailer, made by “Destiny Pictures,” begins with stock footage of the Earth, cars in traffic, and people walking down busy streets. (There is, by the way, a production company called Destiny Pictures, but it doesnt seem to have anything to do with this faux trailer.) Then the voice-over begins: “Seven billion people inhabit planet Earth. Of those alive today, only a small number will leave a lasting impact. And only the very few will make decisions or take actions that renew their homeland and change the course of history.”
Things get less bizarre from there. Psych! Theres footage of Trump making speeches, Kim smiling and waving, all while the voice-over makes a case for peace talks—pitched at Kim. “Two men, two leaders, one destiny,” it continues. “A story about a special moment in time, when a man is presented with one chance that may never be repeated. What will he choose: to show vision and leadership, or not?”
If you are not completely unsettled by this bizarre diplomatic vehicle, just know the trailer continues like this for a full four minutes and 12 seconds—also featuring quick snippets of North Korean citizens, bombs, and, inexplicably, majestic horses running through water. The voice-over appeals directly to Kim, asking if “this leader” will choose to “be the hero of his people” and “shake the hand of peace” (the hand of peace here being Trumps). Theres also footage of a slam dunk, an overt pander to Kims obsession with basketball.
Like any schlocky trailer, this one makes sure to close by explicitly naming its stars and logline: “Featuring President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong Un in a meeting to remake history, to shine in the sun. One moment, one choice. What if? The future remains to be written.” And just like that, the White Houses fake movie trailer—something that really was shown to diplomats, international press, and the controversial leader of North Korea—ends like a sad rip-off of Natasha Bedingfields iconic “Unwritten.” Per Gizmodo, footage of the trailer also played in the room right before Trump took the stage for his press conference. Its real. Its really real.
Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Full ScreenPhotos:Behind the Scenes of Ivankas First Year in WashingtonYohana DestaYohana Desta is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.
