WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Thursday called James Comey, the FBI chief he fired, a "showboat" and "grandstander" and said in a NBC-TV interview he would have dismissed him even if officials at the Justice Department had not recommended it.

"He's a showboat. He's a grandstander. The FBI has been in turmoil," Trump told NBC in his first interview since his abrupt firing on Tuesday of Comey, who was leading an investigation into possible Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible collusion between Trump campaign officials and Moscow.

"I was going to fire Comey. My decision," Trump said. "I was going to fire regardless of recommendation."

(Reporting by Timothy Ahmann; editing by Grant McCool)