Topline
“Melania” grossed an estimated $2.37 million at the domestic box office over its second weekend in theaters—a heavy 67% decline after the documentary about the first lady beat projections last weekend to gross over $7 million.
Key Facts
The Brett Ratner-directed documentary fell to tenth place at domestic box office over its second weekend in theaters, according to early estimates reported by the Hollywood trade publications.
The decline comes despite the film’s expansion to 2,003 theaters in North America, after opening at 1,778 last weekend.
“Melania” grossed $7.1 million over its opening weekend, becoming the most successful documentary premiere outside of a concert film in the last decade.
Key Background
Amazon paid a staggering $40 million to acquire “Melania,” a steep sum for a documentary. The e-commerce giant is also reportedly spending another $35 million to market the film. Despite the weak second weekend performance, Amazon’s head of theatrical distribution Kevin Wilson remained confident in the company’s “distribution strategy, building awareness, engagement,” ahead of an “eventual debut on Prime Video.” In a statement sent to Forbes, Wilson said “audience response is already validating this approach, with exit data showing strong intent to rewatch on Prime Video and meaningful interest in the forthcoming docuseries.” Amazon has not said when the film or docuseries will be released on its streaming service.
What Other Films Were Hits This Weekend?
“Send Help,” the Sam Raimi-directed thriller starring Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien, remained at the top of the domestic box office over the weekend. Despite frigid temperatures in the Northeast and competition from the Super Bowl, the thriller still managed to gross an estimated $10 million over the weekend. “Solo Mio,” an Angel Studios-distributed rom-com starring Kevin James, came in second place on its opening weekend, grossing an estimated $7.2 million. Third place went to “Iron Lung,” a horror film written and directed by YouTuber Mark Fischbach, better known as Markiplier. The film, based on an indie video game, pulled in another $6.2 million over its second weekend in theaters.
