Irish star Brendan Gleeson to play Donald Trump in new mini-series

The first picture has been released of Irish actor Brendan Gleeson playing US President Donald Trump in a new biopic…and we have to say it’s a good likeness.

The Calvary star will appear as the President in a new CBS mini-series, which tells the story of former FBI Director James Comey. The show is based on Comey’s memoirs, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership, and has Jeff Daniels is also signed up to play the former FBI man.

Comey was director of the FBI from 2013 to 2017, when he was fired by President Trump. This followed an inquiry by Robert Mueller into Russian interference in the US election that saw Trump become the country’s 45th President.

Director Billy Ray was full of prise for Gleeson and said he couldn’t think of many actors that have what it takes to take on the role.

Ray told Deadline: “It’s hard to imagine a bigger acting challenge than playing Donald Trump.

“You have to have presence, and a singular kind of dynamism. You also have to have the courage and the will to play Trump’s psychology from the inside out.

“Oh, and you have to be spectacularly talented and watchable. Not many actors check all those boxes. Brendan does. I’m ecstatic about this.”

Meanwhile, Gleeson has revealed how taking up swimming has helped him to unwind and clear his head.

He said: “I go swimming, and once you get into the rhythm of it you stop thinking about it, and you can kind of sort things out.

“Things become quite fluid—well, very fluid with swimming. It’s therapeutic but it’s also great for problem-solving.”