“‘Melania’ Movie Faces Defeat After Disappointing Box Office Performance”
“Melania,” the documentary explored the life of the former First Lady, has faced significant challenges at the box office. Directed by Brett Ratner and produced by Amazon-MGM, it will soon be available for streaming on Amazon Prime starting March 9, shortly after its premiere.
Box Office Performance
Released on January 30, the film surprised audiences with a strong opening weekend. It grossed approximately $7 million in the United States, marking it as one of the highest openings for a non-musical documentary in the last decade. However, this initial success was not sufficient to ensure overall profitability.
Global Financial Struggles
- Budget: The film had a substantial budget of $75 million.
- Total worldwide earnings: $16.6 million.
- International earnings: Approximately $291,000.
In the United Kingdom, the documentary earned just £32,974, equivalent to about $44,604, from 155 cinemas during its debut weekend. The situation worsened in South Africa, where the film was pulled from theaters before its release.
Rapid Decline
After a promising start, “Melania” witnessed a severe decrease in audience attendance. By its third weekend, ticket sales dropped by 62.3%. In the fourth week, the documentary vanished from box office rankings and did not appear in IMDb’s top 38 films.
Future Prospects on Streaming
Amazon strategically plans to recover costs through the film’s upcoming streaming release. Kevin Wilson, the chief of distribution at Amazon MGM, mentioned the initial strong performance as a validation of their distribution strategy. The studio remains hopeful about earning revenue through advertising and new Prime memberships once “Melania” becomes available on Prime Video.
Despite its box office struggles and mixed reviews from critics, “Melania” will soon give audiences another chance to view the inside story of the former First Lady, as it transitions to home streaming on Filmogaz.com’s platform.
