Amazon MGM’s controversial portrait of the first lady appears to be running out of steam.
Melania, the documentary directed by disgraced Epstein associate Brett Ratner, experienced a 67-percent drop-off in attendance during its second weekend, putting it on track to gross just $2.4 million, according to Entertainment Weekly.
The figure brings the film’s total yield to approximately $13.4 million, falling far short of the $40 million Amazon spent to acquire it and the additional $35 million it spent to promote it. The bulk of the film’s earnings came from its $7 million box office takings during opening weekend.
In a preemptive statement issued on Saturday, Amazon distribution chief Kevin Wilson praised the film’s “strong theatrical performance,” describing it as a “critical first moment that validates our wholistic distribution strategy, building awareness, engagement, and provides momentum ahead of the film’s eventual debut on Prime Video.”
While the studio is unlikely to recoup the $75 million spent on the film, Wilson said it hopes to earn some of the money back “when it streams on Prime Video through advertising and Prime signups.”
The lacklustre numbers come despite the Trumps’ best efforts to promote the film, which included President Donald Trump boasting about the film’s performance on social media and Melania promoting the film during a meeting with two freed Israeli-American hostages.
During the meeting with Aviva and Keith Siegel, Trump recounted a prior meeting with Aviva where she sought help for her husband.
“It was captured on camera and available to see in my new film, Melania,” the first lady said. “It was very emotional.”
When asked by a reporter if it was appropriate to use an official White House event to promote her film, the first lady snapped, “It is not promotion.”
“We are here celebrating the release of the hostages; of Aviva and Keith. They were in Washington, D.C., and they said they would like to come over to thank me and to give hugs. There’s nothing to do with promotion.”
The film, which was panned by critics and the subject of a MAGA campaign aimed at boosting the film’s audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, has been the site of a culture war between the president’s supporters and critics since its release.
One Fox News panelist argued that the film’s success could spell trouble for Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections, citing the documentary’s box office numbers which proved that “the silent majority is still out there.”
Others, including frequent Trump foe Jimmy Kimmel, have argued that the film’s box office numbers were rigged, with at least one box-office expert suggesting that there were signs of “fake ticket sales,” where tickets were bought in bulk and then distributed to senior citizen homes and Republican activists in an attempt to boost numbers.
“Imagine those poor senior citizens,” Kimmel joked. “‘Good morning, Mrs. Greenwald. Here are your heart pills and here are your liver pills. And here’s a pair of tickets to Melania.’”
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation also said that MAGA-aligned military officers had been pressuring their subordinates to buy tickets to the film, with the group’s president and founder telling Business Insider that he had received complaints from service members at eight facilities.
“They were pressured to see the movie. Your military superior, that’s not your shift manager at Taco Bell or Starbucks. They have complete and total control over you.”
