What is the story about?
The first Lady of the United States Melina Trump's documentary was released by Amazon in over 100 cinemas in the U.K. but the collections have been disastrous. As per a report, the documentary was able to sell only one ticket across the screens it was given. And this comes at a time when the marketing team has splurged over $35 million for the promotions.
What went wrong?
Richards told the Telegraph that he received a considerable number of emails from the public criticising the decision to screen the film. "I have told everyone that, regardless of how we feel about the movie, if it is BBFC [British Board of Film Classification] approved we look at them and 99% of the time we will show it."
Melania Trump is capping her first year back as first lady with the global release of a documentary she produced about the 20 days leading up to husband Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
“Melania” will premiere Thursday at the Kennedy Center, where the Trumps are expected to walk the red carpet before the film opens in theaters worldwide Friday. They hosted a similar viewing at the White House last Saturday.
The first lady has said that she got the idea for the documentary after her husband won the 2024 election and that it will give viewers a rare, behind-the-scenes look at her life.
“My new film, ‘Melania,’ provides a window into an important period for America, the 47th presidential inauguration,” she said Wednesday before ringing the bell to open the New York Stock Exchange. “For the first time in history, people will witness the 20 days leading up to the inauguration, through the eyes of an incoming first lady.”
A private person, Melania Trump still remains a bit of a mystery to the public in her husband’s second term.
She said the film will show what it takes to step into the high-profile role as she juggles being a businessperson, a wife and a mother, as well as the coordinator of her family’s move back to the Executive Mansion.
“Everyone wants to know. So here it is,” she says in the trailer for the nearly two-hour film.
In another scene from the trailer, it is Inauguration Day and Melania Trump is inside the Capitol, waiting to be escorted into the Rotunda for the ceremony. She turns her head, looks directly into the camera that had been documenting her every move and says, “Here we go again.”
She wrote in her self-titled memoir published in 2024 about how much she values her privacy. She is not as frequently seen or heard from as often as some of her recent predecessors, which may be influencing the public’s perceptions of her. But she also likes to do things her way.
The U.S. public is divided on their views of the first lady, but a significant number — about 4 in 10 adults — had no opinion or had not heard of her, according to a CNN poll from January 2025. About 3 in 10 adults saw her favorably while roughly the same share had an unfavorable opinion.
Her standing among Republicans was higher, with about 7 in 10 saying in the poll that they viewed her favorably, but around one-quarter did not have an opinion.
Experts said the film could help improve perceptions of her.
“I think it’s an attempt, in a way, to really augment or tailor or really refine her image for the American public,” said Katherine Sibley, who teaches history at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. “She’s a mystery to the American people.”
With added inputs from the agencies
What went wrong?
Richards told the Telegraph that he received a considerable number of emails from the public criticising the decision to screen the film. "I have told everyone that, regardless of how we feel about the movie, if it is BBFC [British Board of Film Classification] approved we look at them and 99% of the time we will show it."
The premiere at the Kennedy Center ahead of global release
Melania Trump is capping her first year back as first lady with the global release of a documentary she produced about the 20 days leading up to husband Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
“Melania” will premiere Thursday at the Kennedy Center, where the Trumps are expected to walk the red carpet before the film opens in theaters worldwide Friday. They hosted a similar viewing at the White House last Saturday.
The first lady has said that she got the idea for the documentary after her husband won the 2024 election and that it will give viewers a rare, behind-the-scenes look at her life.
“My new film, ‘Melania,’ provides a window into an important period for America, the 47th presidential inauguration,” she said Wednesday before ringing the bell to open the New York Stock Exchange. “For the first time in history, people will witness the 20 days leading up to the inauguration, through the eyes of an incoming first lady.”
A private person, Melania Trump still remains a bit of a mystery to the public in her husband’s second term.
She said the film will show what it takes to step into the high-profile role as she juggles being a businessperson, a wife and a mother, as well as the coordinator of her family’s move back to the Executive Mansion.
“Everyone wants to know. So here it is,” she says in the trailer for the nearly two-hour film.
In another scene from the trailer, it is Inauguration Day and Melania Trump is inside the Capitol, waiting to be escorted into the Rotunda for the ceremony. She turns her head, looks directly into the camera that had been documenting her every move and says, “Here we go again.”
She wrote in her self-titled memoir published in 2024 about how much she values her privacy. She is not as frequently seen or heard from as often as some of her recent predecessors, which may be influencing the public’s perceptions of her. But she also likes to do things her way.
The U.S. public is divided on their views of the first lady, but a significant number — about 4 in 10 adults — had no opinion or had not heard of her, according to a CNN poll from January 2025. About 3 in 10 adults saw her favorably while roughly the same share had an unfavorable opinion.
Her standing among Republicans was higher, with about 7 in 10 saying in the poll that they viewed her favorably, but around one-quarter did not have an opinion.
Experts said the film could help improve perceptions of her.
“I think it’s an attempt, in a way, to really augment or tailor or really refine her image for the American public,” said Katherine Sibley, who teaches history at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. “She’s a mystery to the American people.”
With added inputs from the agencies
