Melania, the authorised documentary about former US First Lady Melania Trump, has made a surprising debut in the UK box office charts, landing at number 29 on its first weekend of release. The film, directed by Brett Ratner and backed by a significant investment from Amazon, screened in 155 cinemas across the UK and Ireland, generating a total of £32,974 with a site average of £212.80.
A Sigh of Relief for Distributors
Despite the modest financial returns, this opening has provided a sense of relief for distributors, who had anticipated a potentially disastrous launch. The rollout scale was unprecedented for a documentary in the UK, where most titles are typically limited to around 25 locations. This broader release strategy allowed the film to reach a wider audience, albeit with mixed attendance results.
Comparative Performance and Audience Reception
The documentary's takings are just below the £33,000 achieved by Prime Minister, a recent film about former New Zealand leader Jacinda Ardern, during its first weekend. However, Prime Minister was shown on only 28 screens, resulting in a much higher site average of £1,178.57—more than five times that of Melania. While many screenings of Melania were sparsely attended or empty, some venues, such as the Vue Islington in London, reported sold-out showings, particularly in early afternoon slots that attracted mostly journalists.
UK Box Office Landscape
At the top of the UK box office, Chloé Zhao's Hamnet continued its strong performance, earning £1,412,612 across 737 locations in its fourth weekend. Paul Feig's erotic thriller, The Housemaid, followed closely with £1,399,262 from 596 screens in its sixth week. Other notable releases included Shelter and Iron Lung, which rounded out the top five alongside Zootropolis 2, now in its tenth week of release.
New Releases and International Outlook
Among the twelve new titles released in the UK last Friday, Melania was ranked as the ninth best-performing new release, according to tracking and analytics company Comscore. Other releases included Bollywood films Mardaani 3 and Gandhi Talks, which had limited screen availability. Internationally, the documentary has shown resilience, defying expectations in the US by entering the charts at number three with $7 million in takings. To break even globally, the film is projected to need around $100 million in revenue.
This opening weekend for Melania highlights the unpredictable nature of documentary releases in the competitive film market, offering insights into audience interest and distribution strategies.
