Amazon looks to tap Donald Trump Jr. for potential reboot of The Apprentice

Amazon Studios is reportedly eyeing a reboot of 'The Apprentice,' with Donald Trump Jr. as the host.

Discussions on bringing the show back are still in the early stages, and executives at Amazon - which previously produced the 'Melania' documentary - have not yet approached the Trump family about the proposal, The Wall Street Journal reports.  

The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House and the Trump Organization for comment, but neither has yet responded to the matter. 

The original reality television show from the 2000s featured now President Donald Trump in the iconic role - propelling him to the national spotlight. 

He hosted the show, in which contestants competed for a job with the business mogul, when it aired on NBC for 14 seasons.

Amazon then inherited the back catalog when it acquired MGM film and television studio in 2022. 

'Since our acquisition of MGM, we have had preliminary internal discussions about what's next for "The Apprentice" as a property,' a spokesperson for Amazon told the Journal.

But the spokesperson stressed that the show is not in active development and no potential has been selected. 

Amazon MGM Studios head Mike Hopkins and other Amazon executives are said to have first considered rebooting the show early last year, around the time President Trump was being sworn in for his second term, people familiar with the discussions told the Journal.

At around the same time, Amazon agreed to pay $40 million to distribute the 'Melania' documentary, which chronicled the First Lady's first few weeks of her husband's second term in office.

The price Amazon paid for the film was nearly three times the next highest offer for it, and Melania's cut was reportedly more than 70 percent. 

By March 2025, Amazon released episodes of the original 'The Apprentice' on Prime Video. Those familiar with the internal discussions at the time said there was a rush to re-air the hit NBC show following Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential election. 

Rebooting the show now would fit into the streaming service's push to reach a broader audience - and develop content that would appeal to the president, who also served as an executive producer of the program, and the MAGA base. 

Under Hopkins, Amazon has previously partnered with Wonder Project, an independent studio that produces religious content, and released its 'House of David' series about the biblical king.

It also launched Wonder's own faith-based streaming service last year.

Amazon executives have looked at other programming that could appeal to Trump's base as well - and even discussed making a documentary following Trump's first inauguration, according to former employees. 

But Amazon executives ultimately decided not to move forward with that project. 

The spokesperson for the company noted that it produces hundreds of shows and films each year to serve audiences with diverse tastes and has made new investments in faith-based shows and films just like other studios.

But the move to create more content that resonates with Trump voters comes as founder Jeff Bezos, who retired as CEO in 2021 but remains active as the executive chairman, develops closer ties with the Trump administration.

Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, Bezos killed the Washington Post's endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris.

Amazon then contributed $1 million to Trump's 2025 inauguration, and Bezos was seen at the president's swearing in and other inaugural events.

Most recently, Bezos was among the guests at a state dinner honoring King Charles and Queen Camilla. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to Amazon for comment.