The first lady’s documentary may have broken initial box office predictions, but Melania is nowhere to be seen on charts just a month after its release.
Melania Trump’s eponymous documentary, chronicling the days leading up to her second stint as first lady, has completely disappeared from the domestic box office this past weekend despite still showing in cinemas. According to IMDb’s box office rankings, Melania doesn’t feature in the top 38 films domestically.
By comparison, the independent film Obex ranks at the bottom of the list for gross box office between Feb. 27 and March 1, pulling in only $1,054. The box office is led by Scream 7, GOAT, and Wuthering Heights. The musical documentary EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert ranks in the top five in gross earnings.
Melania, an Amazon-MGM production, was released on Jan. 30. In its opening weekend at the box office, the film earned roughly $7 million, being hailed as a success by the president and his supporters more widely. While it exceeded early market projections, many criticized the film’s earnings relative to the amount Amazon spent on acquiring and marketing the film. Amazon MGM reportedly bought the Brett Ratner-directed doc for $40 million and spent another $35 million on its marketing.
Amazon’s page for the vanity doc indicates there are still showings nationwide. As of Feb. 25, the movie was playing in 505 theaters, according to Forbes.
During its theatrical run, Melania collected roughly $16.2 million domestically and nearly another $187,000 internationally, as per The Number. Its international presence was doomed from the start, however. The documentary was pulled entirely from South Africa before its scheduled release. In the United Kingdom, where hundreds of screenings were made available nationwide, the film performed abysmally. Reports say that Melania is no longer showing in the UK.
In the last two months, Melania stirred controversy and drew criticism. The director, Ratner, appeared multiple times in the latest batch of the Epstein files; the documentary was slammed by its own crew; the filmmakers were accused of using musical numbers without permission; and the posters promoting the film were hit with “extensive and severe” vandalism.
Melania has been deeply divisive when it comes to ratings, too. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film’s critics’ score is at a low 11 percent, while its audience approval stands at 98 percent. Meanwhile, on Letterboxd, the first lady’s doc was brutally review-bombed online prior to its release.
Despite its relative success for a documentary film, Melania was also flagged for showing signs of “fake” ticket sales being bought in bulk.
After its theatrical run ends, Melania will be available to view on Amazon.
“Step inside Melania Trump’s world as she orchestrates inauguration plans, navigates the complexities of the White House transition, and moves her family back to the Nation’s Capital,” Amazon’s description for the film reads. “With exclusive footage capturing critical meetings, private conversations, and never-before-seen environments, ‘Melania’ showcases Mrs. Trump’s return to one of the world’s most powerful roles.”
