Moviegoers are running out of love for Melania.
The first lady’s eponymous documentary continued to plummet on only its third weekend, suffering a 62.3-percent drop in attendance, according to data from IMDbPro.
This puts the project on pace to gross $15.4 million in total, nowhere near the $40 million that Jeff Bezos’ Amazon spent to acquire it and an additional $35 million to promote it. The documentary was directed by Brett Ratner, who has faced heat for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein and allegations of sexual misconduct.
Last week, as Melania logged an even higher 67-percent drop-off at the box office, Amazon MGM distribution chief Kevin Wilson insisted that the documentary’s “strong theatrical performance” was “a critical first moment that validates our holistic distribution strategy, building awareness, engagement, and provides momentum ahead of the film’s eventual debut on Prime Video.”
Amazon MGM has maintained that Melania will muster strong numbers on streaming to make up for its poor box office showing. The studio said it plans “to recoup some of the cost of the film when it streams on Prime Video through advertising and Prime signups,” though it has not yet announced a streaming release date.
“Together, theatrical and streaming represent two distinct value-creating moments that amplify the film’s overall impact,” Wilson said, adding that exit polls have shown interest in replaying the documentary on Amazon’s Prime Video as well as tuning in to the docuseries.
During her black carpet premiere at the Kennedy Center last month, the 51-year-old first lady teased that a docuseries would soon build on her vanity project.
“We are still producing it, and that will be completely new footage,” she told reporters at the time. “We have some scenes that are not in the movie. We will have in a few months a docuseries, so people will see much more documentary.”
As Variety pointed out, Amazon has deep enough pockets to afford massive losses on its Melania bet—so its goal wasn’t to make money.
“Whether or not people like it, the value of these movies is different for our business model. We’re getting a massive marketing campaign that’s being paid for before the film gets to streaming,” Wilson told the outlet in 2024. “If we can put these movies out theatrically and cover our P&A (print and advertising) costs, why wouldn’t we?”
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