Emma Thompson Reveals Trump Asked Her Out Soon After Her Divorce: 'I Thought It Was A Joke'

Last Updated:August 10, 2025, 15:55 IST

At the Locarno Film Festival, actress Emma Thompson revealed that Trump had called her and asked her out on the same day as her divorce from actor Kenneth Branagh was confirmed.

British actress Emma Thompson and US President Donald Trump. (Reuters/File Photo)

British actress Emma Thompson, while attending the Locarno Film Festival, recalled a surprising call from US President Donald Trump asking for a dinner, joking that she could have “changed the course of American history" if she accepted.

The 66-year-old Love Actually star said the call came while she was filming the 1998 political comedy Primary Colors, loosely based on former US President Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign. It happened on the same day as Thompson’s divorce from actor-filmmaker Kenneth Branagh was confirmed, according to The Telegraph.

“A phone rang in my trailer, and it was Donald Trump. I thought it was a joke. ‘Hi, it’s Donald Trump here.’ I said: ‘How can I help you?’ I thought he needed directions. He said: ‘I would love for you to stay in one of my beautiful places, and maybe we could have dinner’," Thompson recounted at the Locarno Film Festival.

‘Could’ve Changed The Course Of American History’

“I realised that on that very day, my divorce had finally come through. I bet he has people looking all over for suitable people he could take out, for all these nice divorcees — I mean, he found the number of my trailer! That’s stalking! So yes, I could have gone on a date with Donald Trump. I could have changed the course of American history!" she quipped.

However, Thompson said she rejected Trump’s offer, politely saying, “That’s very sweet. Thank you so much. I’ll get back to you." Later, the actress revealed that Trump had split from his second wife, Marla Maples, and his team might have been looking for a suitable partner for him to take out.

Emma Thompson met Kenneth Branagh in 1987 on the sets of the miniseries Fortunes of War and married in 1989. They divorced in 1995 after Branagh’s affair with Helena Bonham Carter. Several years later, in 2003, Thompson married actor Greg Wise. The couple share two children, son Tindyebwa “Tindy" Agaba and daughter Gaia, who accompanied her to the festival.

Donald Trump split from Maples, 61, in May 1997. He was previously married to his first wife, Ivana Trump, and later remarried, tying the knot with Melania Trump in 2005.

Salma Hayek’s Explosive Revelation

Thompson’s revelation came several years after popular actress Salma Hayek also spoke about Trump’s attempts to ask her out. , which resurfaced after Trump won the 2024 elections. “When I met that man, I had a boyfriend, and he tried to befriend him to get my home phone number," Hayek said in an interview shortly before the presidential elections in 2016.

In 2017, during an appearance on ‘The Daily Show with Trevor Noah‘, Hayek said Trump immediately draped her coat over her shoulders when she was feeling cold at an event. “Trump said, ‘Sorry, your girlfriend looked cold, so I offered my coat.’ Then he kept talking to my boyfriend."

She said Trump kept speaking to her boyfriend and later invited her and her partner to visit his hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, if they were ever in the area, which is how he got their phone numbers. Hayek said that Trump called her directly instead of calling her boyfriend.

“He’s asking me out, and I said, ‘What about my boyfriend? Are you crazy? You’re asking me out knowing I have a boyfriend?'" the actress said. Trump reportedly responded by saying, “He’s not good enough for you. He’s not important; he’s not big enough for you. You should go out with me."

Aveek Banerjee

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master's in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international...Read More

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master's in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international...

Read More

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First Published:

August 10, 2025, 15:55 IST

News viral Emma Thompson Reveals Trump Asked Her Out Soon After Her Divorce: 'I Thought It Was A Joke'

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