Melania Documentary Stumbles in Australian Cinemas with Poor Opening Weekend
The much-publicised documentary Melania, Amazon's $106 million production about former US First Lady Melania Trump, has experienced a disappointing opening weekend in Australian cinemas, debuting at a lowly 31st position in the national box office charts.
Modest Earnings from Limited Screenings
According to official figures, the film was screened across 33 cinemas throughout Australia during its opening weekend, generating a total of $32,399 in revenue. This translates to an average of just $982 per screen, a figure that industry analysts describe as underwhelming for a production of this scale and promotional budget.
The documentary's performance placed it one position below Wicked: For Good, which has been showing in Australian cinemas for over two months yet still managed to earn $33,231 from 35 screens during the same weekend period.
International Comparisons and Production Costs
Internationally, the film's performance has been mixed. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Melania was shown in 155 cinemas and earned £32,974 (approximately A$64,000) during its opening weekend, resulting in a screen average of £212.80 (about A$415).
In the United States, the documentary had what appeared to be a stronger start, taking US$7 million during its heavily promoted opening weekend – reportedly the strongest documentary debut in over a decade. However, with production costs of US$40 million and promotion expenses of US$35 million, the film would need to generate approximately US$100 million globally to break even.
Controversy and Critical Reception
The documentary has faced significant criticism from reviewers and audiences alike. The Guardian critic Xan Brooks described the film as "dispiriting, deadly and unrevealing," suggesting that while there might be a worthwhile documentary to be made about Melania Trump, this particular effort was "unredeemable."
On review aggregation platforms, Melania has received overwhelmingly negative scores. The film currently holds a 6% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of six out of 100 on Metacritic. On the Internet Movie Database (IMDb), it has received a rating of 1.3 out of 10 from more than 32,000 votes – an improvement from its initial score of 1.0, which briefly made it the lowest-rated film in the platform's history.
Production Background and Statements
Directed by Brett Ratner, who has largely retreated from Hollywood following numerous sexual misconduct allegations during the #MeToo movement, the documentary has been widely criticised as a blatant attempt by Amazon to curry favour with Donald Trump. Ratner has dismissed these claims as "ridiculous," emphasising the film's substantial production budget during its Washington premiere.
"I can tell you right now, if we were audited and they said, 'How much was spent on this movie?' This movie is one of the most expensive movies – documentaries – in the genre ever made," Ratner stated. "It wasn't about getting rich. I mean, I think the Trumps are wealthy and successful enough. This is about giving me the ability to hire the best crew in the world."
Donald Trump has told reporters he "wasn't involved" in negotiations regarding the documentary's substantial price tag, while Melania Trump has indicated that producers approached several distributors before settling on Amazon because they "agreed to do theatres all around the world."
Release Timing and Future Prospects
Due to a worldwide embargo imposed by Amazon, Melania opened in Australia on Friday rather than the usual Thursday, meaning its opening weekend figures missed one day's potential takings. However, industry experts note that opening weekends are typically strongest for films without positive word-of-mouth to sustain them – and given the widespread criticism and poor reviews, Melania has likely already peaked in the Australian market.
The film's performance raises questions about the commercial viability of high-budget documentaries focused on polarising political figures, particularly in international markets where audience interest may be more limited than in the subject's home country.
