The documentary “Melania” has dropped off box office charts after only four weeks in theaters, highlighting a dramatic failure for Amazon MGM Studios’ much-debated $75 million investment in First Lady Melania Trump.
The 104-minute movie is no longer listed among the top 38 domestic releases according to IMDb’s box office rankings, effectively concluding its theatrical life with $16.3 million earned domestically, far below Amazon’s $40 million purchase price and $35 million marketing budget.
After debuting at No. 3 with $7.1 million on January 30 — the strongest opening for a non-concert documentary in over ten years — the film depicting Melania Trump’s final 20 days before returning to the White House saw a 67% second-weekend decline. By week three, it had fallen to No. 15 and soon vanished from major markets.
The studio halted box office reporting on Saturday, February 21, and the film has stopped screening in both New York and Los Angeles. A WIRED review of 1,398 showings in 329 U.S. theaters found only two fully sold-out screenings nationwide — one in Florida and one in Missouri.
Amazon MGM reportedly cut 600 theaters after 700 theaters had already dropped the title the previous week. On Thursday, the last day of wide release, the film earned just $70,000, averaging $59 per theater — indicating that many screenings drew extremely small audiences.
Despite the collapse, Kevin Wilson, Amazon MGM’s head of domestic theatrical distribution, struck an upbeat note. “Melania’s strong theatrical performance is 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,” Wilson said.
The film, directed by Brett Ratner, drew controversy from the start. Ratner was accused of sexual misconduct by six women in November 2017, including actresses Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge, during the height of the #MeToo movement. He denied all allegations and was never charged. Warner Bros. later ended its partnership with him, and this marks his first major release since. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos met with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in December 2024, shortly before Amazon bought the documentary rights.
The documentary debuted in 1,778 theaters across North America before expanding to 2,003 screens in its second weekend. By February 25, its footprint had shrunk to 505 theaters. Stronger markets included Dallas, Orlando, Tampa, Phoenix, Houston, Atlanta, and West Palm Beach. The audience was predominantly female (72%), white (75%), over 55 (72%), and rural theaters delivered 46% of the film’s box office — far higher than the typical 30%.
The White House hosted a private black-tie screening on January 24 ahead of the film’s Kennedy Center premiere. Attendees included Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan, AMD CEO Lisa Su, Queen Rania of Jordan, Tony Robbins, and former boxer Mike Tyson. After the event, Melania Trump posted on X: “I am deeply humbled to have been surrounded by an inspiring room of friends, family, and cultural iconoclasts at the White House last night.”
Critics panned the documentary, giving it an 11% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes from 53 reviews. The Guardian’s Xan Brooks described it as “a gilded trash remake of ‘The Zone of Interest’” and labeled it “pure, endless ****.” Rotten Tomatoes’ summary states: “Presented with great pomp and circumstance but little insight, this documentary purports to be an up-close view of the First Lady while curiously revealing very little about her.”
Audience reactions were drastically different. The film received a 98% verified audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and an “A” CinemaScore — producing the widest critic–audience divide in Rotten Tomatoes history. Parent company Versant denied any review manipulation, stating all entries came from verified Fandango ticket buyers.
International results were even weaker, totaling only $291,552. In the U.K., it debuted at No. 29, taking in £32,974 from 155 theaters with a £212 per-screen average. Second-weekend revenue plunged 88% to £4,091. In Mexico City, 15 of 27 showings across eight theaters sold zero tickets, with an average of 2.9 viewers per screening. South African distributor Filmfinity canceled the release outright.
Amazon’s unusual theatrical approach has sparked discussion about whether theatrical runs now mostly function as costly advertisements for streaming content. Analyst David A. Gross said that although the opening was “excellent” for a political documentary, “for any other film, with $75 million in costs and limited foreign potential, it would be a problem.” Amazon’s $75 million total spend, according to several reports, is far above standard documentary budgets — for comparison, RBG (2018) reportedly spent only $3 million on marketing.
The heavy investment has led to speculation about Amazon’s intentions. Disney was said to have offered $14 million to $15 million for streaming rights alone — meaning Amazon outbid rivals by around $25 million. Reports citing the Wall Street Journal claim Melania Trump personally received roughly $28 million of the $40 million acquisition fee.
The documentary will now move to Prime Video, where Amazon MGM hopes it will resonate with a broader audience. A streaming release date has yet to be announced, and a companion docuseries is already being developed under the original acquisition agreement. Whether streaming numbers can justify the extraordinary spending is still unknown — but for Amazon, the world’s largest e‑commerce company, $75 million may be a relatively minor cost for improving relations with the Trump administration.