Amazon MGM Studios’ documentary Melania opened to an estimated $7 million in U.S. and Canada ticket sales, a rare theatrical splash for a political non-fiction release—and a complicated one to judge given its unusually high price tag. The film played in 1,778 theaters after a heavily promoted rollout tied to the first lady’s public appearances around the premiere.
The company paid $40 million for the rights and spent about $35 million on marketing, according to figures cited by multiple reports and echoed by the Associated Press, which described the release as unlike recent documentary campaigns. In a statement, an Amazon MGM Studios spokesperson said the company licensed the film “for one reason and one reason only — because we think customers are going to love it.” Kevin Wilson, Amazon MGM’s head of domestic theatrical distribution, said the studio was “very encouraged” by the opening and framed the theatrical run as the start of a longer life that continues on Prime Video and through an announced follow-up docuseries.
Audience polling suggests the film found its core constituency. The Associated Press reported that ticket buyers skewed older and female, and that the film played strongest in Southern states, with Florida and Texas cited among top markets. Viewers also graded the film an “A” via CinemaScore, even as late-arriving reviews from major critics landed hard once the film reached theaters.
Internationally, early returns looked far softer. In the U.K. and Ireland, the film grossed £32,974 from 155 cinemas in its first weekend, according to reporting that noted many empty showings and a low per-site average for a release of that scale. In Australia, it earned A$32,399 from 33 screens, debuting outside the top 30.
Some box-office analysts see the spending as a strategic wager rather than a traditional profit play. David A. Gross of FranchiseRe told the AP that, at that cost level, “it would be a problem” for a typical film, then added: “But this is a political investment, not a for-profit movie venture.”
