The authorised documentary about Melania Trump has struggled to attract audiences in UK cinemas, with just one ticket sold for the premiere screening at Vue's flagship Islington branch in London. According to Tim Richards, chief executive of Vue, ticket sales for the film are “soft” across the country.
At the Vue in Blackburn, Castleford and Hamilton, all seats remained available for the 28 screenings of the film. Slightly higher sales were reported at Cineworld in Wandsworth, which sold four tickets, and at the Cineworld in Broughton, where five backrow seats were booked.
Richards said he had received a considerable number of emails from the public criticising Vue’s decision to screen the film, but added: “We do not play judge and jury to censor movies.” One industry analyst suggested the distributor may be using a “four-walling” strategy, paying a set fee to cinemas to secure screenings, which would explain the unusually wide release for a documentary.
Amazon MGM Studios bought the rights to the film for $40m (£30m) and is spending $35m on global marketing. Boxoffice Pro estimated an opening weekend of $1m to $2m in the US, while the National Research Group projected $5m. In the UK, projections are uncertain, but the per-screen average is likely to be low given the 100-plus venue rollout.
By comparison, the documentary Prime Minister about Jacinda Ardern took £33,000 on its first weekend across 28 UK screens in December 2025. Despite the slow start, Donald Trump posted on social media that the film is “a MUST WATCH” and that tickets are “selling out, FAST!”
