''The President Show'' is an American comedy television series that premiered on April 27, 2017, on

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

. The show was created by

Anthony Atamanuik Anthony Atamanuik (; born June 15, 1974) is an American writer, actor, and comedian. He impersonated former U.S. President Donald Trump during the campaign and his presidency, first on the '' Trump vs. Bernie'' debate tour and then on ''The Pres ...

who also stars as

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

, the former

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

, alongside

Peter Grosz Peter Grosz is an American actor and television writer. He is most recognizable for appearing in Sonic Drive-In's "Two Guys" commercials, in which he appears as the straight man in a double act with improvisational comedian T. J. Jagodowski u ...

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th ...

, the

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Format

Introduced as "the forty-fifth and final

", Atamanuik as Trump begins each episode at a "press-conference" set, during which he announces tonight's theme and a variation of his

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

, "I'm the president. Can you believe it? Let's roll!", which signals a transition to the

title sequence A title sequence (also called an opening sequence or intro) is the method by which films or television programmes present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with visu ...

. After the opening, Trump is shown in the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped room ...

set, accompanied by

, and the two perform a segment pertaining to the recent week's news. Next, a pre-taped segment is shown with either Trump, Pence, or both on-location interacting with various groups of people in-character. After that, Trump interviews a guest at a

Mar-a-Lago Mar-a-Lago ( from the Spanish for ''sea to lake'') is a resort and national historic landmark in Palm Beach, Florida, owned by former U.S. president Donald Trump. Trump acquired Mar-a-Lago in 1985 and referred to it as his "Winter White House" ...

set. Finally, back in the Oval Office, Trump and Pence deliver a farewell address, often taking form of a sketch, which transitions into the closing credits.

Cast and characters

Main

Recurring

John Gemberling John Gemberling (born February 1, 1981) is an American actor and comedian best known for roles as Bevers on the Comedy Central series ''Broad City'', as Gil on the NBC sitcom '' Marry Me'', and as John Hancock on the Fox sitcom '' Making History' ...

Steve Bannon Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist in the administration of U.S. president Donald Trump during t ...

* Mila Filatova as

Melania Trump Melania Trump ( ; born Melanija Knavs , Germanized as Melania Knauss ; born April 26, 1970) is a Slovene-American former model and businesswoman who served as First Lady of the United States from 2017 to 2021 as the wife of 45th president Do ...

Mario Cantone Mario Cantone (born December 9, 1959) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and singer with numerous appearances on Comedy Central including ''Chappelle's Show''. He also played Anthony Marentino in ''Sex and the City'' and Terri in ''Men In T ...

Anthony Scaramucci Anthony Scaramucci ( ; born January 6, 1964) is an American financier who briefly served as the White House Director of Communications from July 21 to July 31, 2017. Scaramucci worked at Goldman Sachs's investment banking, equities, and priv ...

James Adomian James Adomian (born January 31, 1980) is an Armenian-American stand-up comedian, actor, and impressionist. He is best known for his work on ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'', ''Chapo Trap House'', ''Last Comic Standing'', ''The Late Late Show with Craig Fe ...

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...

Adam Pally Adam Saul Pally (born March 18, 1982) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for starring as Max Blum in the ABC comedy series '' Happy Endings'' and as Dr. Peter Prentice in '' The Mindy Project''. He also starr ...

Donald Trump Jr. Donald John Trump Jr. (born December 31, 1977) is an American political activist, businessman, author, and former television presenter. He is the eldest child of Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, and his firs ...

Guest

* Neil Casey as

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

* Ric Stoneback as

Roger Ailes Roger Eugene Ailes (May 15, 1940 – May 18, 2017) was an American television executive and media consultant. He was the chairman and CEO of Fox News, Fox Television Stations and 20th Television. Ailes was a media consultant for Republica ...

Lewis Black Lewis Niles Black (born August 30, 1948) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. His comedy routines often escalate into angry rants about history, politics, religion, or any other cultural trends. He hosted the Comedy Central series '' Lewi ...

as Trump's subconscious *

Kathy Najimy Kathy Ann Najimy ( ; ar, كاثي ان نجيمي ; born February 6, 1957) is an American actress and activist. She is best known for her roles in the films ''Soapdish'' (1991), ''Sister Act'' (1992), '' Hocus Pocus'' (1993), ''Hope Floats'' (1 ...

Ivana Trump Ivana Marie Trump (, ; February 20, 1949 – July 14, 2022) was a Czech-American businesswoman, media personality, socialite, fashion designer, author, and model. Ivana lived in Canada in the 1970s before relocating to the United States and m ...

Kathy Griffin Kathleen Mary Griffin (born November 4, 1960) is an American comedian and actress who has starred in television comedy specials and has released comedy albums. In 2007 and 2008, Griffin won Primetime Emmy Awards for her reality show '' Kathy ...

Kellyanne Conway Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway (née Fitzpatrick; born January 20, 1967) is an American political consultant and pollster, who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the administration of Donald Trump from 2017 to 2020. She was previous ...

Griffin Dunne Thomas Griffin Dunne (; born June 8, 1955) is an American actor, film producer, and film director. Dunne studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City. He is known for portraying Jack Goodman in '' An Amer ...

Robert Mueller Robert Swan Mueller III (; born August 7, 1944) is an American lawyer and government official who served as the sixth director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2001 to 2013. A graduate of Princeton University and New York ...

Stephanie March Stephanie Caroline March Benton (born July 23, 1974) is an American actress. She is known for starring as Alexandra Cabot in the crime drama franchise ''Law & Order'', which she played in the NBC series '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (2 ...

Ivanka Trump Ivana Marie "Ivanka" Trump (; born October 30, 1981) is an American businesswoman and the first daughter of Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. She was a senior advisor in his administration, and also was the ...

Episodes

Season 1 (2017)

Specials

Production

Background

Atamanuik began impersonating Trump during the 2016 United States presidential campaign. His first efforts were improvisations with the

Upright Citizens Brigade The Upright Citizens Brigade is an improvisational and sketch comedy group that emerged from Chicago's ImprovOlympic in 1990. The original incarnation of the group consisted of Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh, Adam McKay, ...

in August 2015. In a subsequent sketch series called ''Trump vs. Bernie'', Atamanuik challenged

, who played

, in mock debates. The two toured the United States and appeared on television. They went on Comedy Central's ''

@midnight ''@midnight with Chris Hardwick'' (shortened to and formerly exclusively titled ''@midnight'') was an American late night Internet-themed panel game show, hosted by Chris Hardwick, that aired Monday through Thursday nights between October 21, ...

'' in March 2016, and had a one-hour sketch special on

Fusion Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole. Fusion may also refer to: Science and technology Physics *Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...

in May 2016. Atamanuik also appeared by himself as Trump on several shows during the campaign, including ''@midnight'', ''

The Chris Gethard Show ''The Chris Gethard Show'' was a phone-in comedy and variety talk show created and hosted by Chris Gethard. Initially a live show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York, the show debuted on public-access channel Manhattan Neighborh ...

'' and '' The View''. Atamanuik would later originate his idea for the series by envisioning his idea of President

's version of a fireside chat – "this sort of late night show in the vein of Steve Allen and Johnny Carson... but set in the Oval Office".

Development

On March 30, 2017,

announced a new late night program via two

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

accounts: @PresidentShow and @LateNightDonald. The network did not provide further details at the time of this announcement. A few days later, the series was officially announced. It was reported that the series was created by Anthony Atamanuik and executive produced by Adam Pally. The show was set to feature Atamanuik hosting as president

and

acting as his sidekick in the form of vice president

. Production companies involved with the series were set to include Clone Wolf Productions and 3 Arts Entertainment. The show's production staff was eventually filled out with Andre Allen acting as director and Atamanuik, Grosz, Pally, Jason Ross, Olivia Gerke, Josh Lieberman, and Greg Walter set as executive producers. The show is presented in the typical format of a

late-night talk show A late-night talk show is a genre of talk show popular in the United States, where the format originated. It is generally structured around humorous monologues about the day's news, guest interviews, comedy sketches and music performances. It i ...

, including desk segments, field pieces, and guest interviews. The show's writers are Atamaniuk, Grosz, Ross,

Mitra Jouhari Mitra Jouhari is an American comedian, actress, and writer. She is best known for starring in the television series '' Three Busy Debras'', based on the sketch comedy group she co-founded. Jouhari has written for the television series ''Big Mouth ...

, Christine Nangle, Rae Sanni, Evan Waite,

Neil Casey Neil Casey (born July 28, 1981) is an American actor, writer, and comedian. He served as a writer on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2012 to 2013 and '' Inside Amy Schumer'' in 2014, receiving Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Writi ...

, and Emmy Blotnick.

Casting

On March 29, 2018, it was announced that

had been cast as

in the "Make America Great-A-Thon" special. The following day, it was announced that

had also been cast in the special as

. On September 27, 2018, it was announced that

had been cast as

in the "A President Show Documentary: The Fall Of Donald Trump" special and that Grosz, Griffin, Cantone, Pally, and Gemberling would reprise their respective characters.

Release

Marketing

Simultaneously alongside the show's official announcement, Comedy Central released the first teaser trailer for the series. Comedy Central conducted a

viral marketing Viral marketing is a business strategy that uses existing social networks to promote a product mainly on various social media platforms. Its name refers to how consumers spread information about a product with other people, much in the same way tha ...

campaign to advertise the show by inserting footage in episodes of ''

The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...

'' and ''@midnight'' to make it appear the network had been hacked; footage shown included a web address with a Russian

country code Country codes are short alphabetic or numeric geographical codes (geocodes) developed to represent countries and dependent areas, for use in data processing and communications. Several different systems have been developed to do this. The term ...

, which redirected to ''The President Show''s

account.

Renewal

On May 23, 2017, Comedy Central extended the first season by ordering an additional seven episodes. On January 15, 2018, Comedy Central president Kent Alterman discussed the show at the annual

Television Critics Association The Television Critics Association (TCA) is a group of approximately 200 United States and Canadian television critics, journalists and columnists who cover television programming for newspapers, magazines and web publications. The TCA accepts app ...

's winter press tour. In regards to the show's future he said, "We're working that out" and that "we'll have something soon." On March 14, 2018, it was announced that the series would officially return for two one-hour specials. The first special was announced as being titled ''Make America Great-A-Thon: A President Show Special'' and that it would air on April 3, 2018. On September 27, 2018, it was announced that the second special had been titled ''A President Show Documentary: The Fall Of Donald Trump'' and that it would air on October 22, 2018.

Reception

Critical response

''The President Show'' has been met with a mixed response from critics since its premiere. On the review aggregation website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the series holds a 67% approval rating with an average rating of 6.67 out of 10 based on 12 reviews.

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 58 out of 100 based on 5 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Writing in ''

The Daily Beast ''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. It was founded in 2008. It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief from 2018 to 2021. In a 20 ...

'', Matt Wilstein called Atamanuik's work "the most scathing and hilarious impression of the 45th president in a very crowded field... On Comedy Central’s The President Show and a series of increasingly apocalyptic specials, Atamanuik did far more than just jokingly mimic Trump. Rather, he tried to take viewers inside the demented mind of the most dangerous president in modern American history."

Ratings

The series premiere had one million viewers over the course of three days and the show averages about 870,000 viewers.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:President Show Comedy Central original programming 2010s American political comedy television series 2010s American satirical television series 2017 American television series debuts 2017 American television series endings 2010s American late-night television series Comedy Central late-night programming English-language television shows Television shows set in Washington, D.C. Television shows set in Florida Parodies of Donald Trump Political satirical television series Television series about presidents of the United States