Amazon’s documentary Melania suffered a steep decline at the box office in its second weekend, falling 67% to an estimated $2.37 million after a stronger-than-expected theatrical debut.

The sharp downturn pushed the film from third place on the charts to ninth, signaling fading audience momentum despite early curiosity.

So far, the documentary centered on former First Lady Melania Trump has earned approximately $13.5 million, largely from U.S. theaters.

That figure leaves the film far from recouping its reported $40 million acquisition cost and an additional $35 million spent on marketing, making profitability through theatrical release highly unlikely.

Ahead of the film’s debut, criticism had already emerged within the industry. A former Amazon film executive publicly questioned whether the hefty investment was motivated by anything other than political considerations, comments that resurfaced as box office numbers declined.

While movie attendance typically dips during Super Bowl weekend, competing releases performed more steadily. Amazon responded by emphasizing a dual-release strategy, stating that theatrical exhibition and streaming serve as complementary value drivers for the project.

Critically, Melania was poorly received, earning overwhelmingly negative reviews. However, its unusually high 99% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes prompted the platform to issue a rare statement affirming the rating’s authenticity.

Source: Techcrunch