INT. TRUMP TOWER – NIGHT
Marble floors gleam. Gold everywhere. A painting of Donald Trump hangs above the fireplace like Caesar in Manhattan. Patrick Bateman sips from a crystal tumbler of 30-year-old Macallan. Donald Trump paces proudly, showing off his skyscraper like a man introducing his kingdom. The conversation drifts to ghosts of the past.
PATRICK BATEMAN
(smirking, sharp in Valentino)
You know, Donald, I always admired Ivana. She had… edge. Czech frost. The kind of cold beauty you could carve diamonds on.
DONALD TRUMP
(stops, eyes sparkle with nostalgia and a little disdain)
Ivana? Tremendous woman. Tremendous. Very strong. She could run a hotel better than most men I knew. But she wanted to be… in charge. And I don’t like being second place. Ever.
PATRICK BATEMAN
Of course not. Alpha to the bone. She had that Eastern Bloc toughness. Like she could have survived a Gulag… or run one.
DONALD TRUMP
Exactly! That’s what I used to say. “Ivana, you should be running Czechoslovakia.” I gave her the Plaza, let her run Atlantic City for a while—people forget that. But the problem is, Patrick, when you give too much power… they start thinking they’re the brand.
PATRICK BATEMAN
(leaning forward, intrigued)
And you’re not just the brand. You’re the empire.
DONALD TRUMP
That’s right. I’m Trump. The name is the business. Not her, not Marla, not even Melania. Me.
PATRICK BATEMAN
(chuckles)
It’s almost romantic. In a ruthless, Ayn Rand sort of way.
DONALD TRUMP
(grinning)
Ivana tried to negotiate the prenup. Big mistake. I told her: “You want half the kingdom? Build your own.” And she did—kind of. She’s got her hotels, her lines… Ivana Inc. But she was never Trump Inc.
PATRICK BATEMAN
That’s the thing about legacy. You either own it, or you get written out of it.
DONALD TRUMP
She got the money. I got the name. Fair trade. Besides, I upgraded.
PATRICK BATEMAN
(icy smile)
Like a car lease. Cold, efficient. Very… Reaganite.
They sip their scotch as the skyline glows behind them. Two men, high above the city, haunted by women and ambition, comparing notes on love, power, and brands.