Melania Trump Docuseries Set for $16.6M Predecessor's Shadow

Amazon Prime Video confirmed on Thursday that its upcoming two-part docuseries about Melania Trump will debut on November 20. The announcement resolves scheduling uncertainty for the project, which is designed to expand upon the narrative presented in the earlier feature-length documentary, Melania, The Film.

The financial stakes for the streaming platform are evident in the performance of the original movie. The film generated approximately $16.6 million in worldwide box office revenue. Industry reports indicate that Amazon paid around $40 million for the rights to the project and spent an additional $35 million on marketing. These figures suggest the studio absorbed a loss of tens of millions of dollars during the theatrical run, despite the film outperforming typical genre expectations at the box office.

The new series consists of two episodes with specific thematic focuses. The first installment, titled Family & Trust, details the former First Lady's preparations for her role in the White House. The second episode, named Pride & Honor, examines the immediate period following the presidential inauguration. Amazon describes the production as containing material never before shared with the public, a claim intended to differentiate the series from the earlier theatrical release.

Brett Ratner serves as the director for both the film and the series. Melania Trump is listed as an executive producer alongside Marc Beckman. Ratner also holds a producer credit, working in collaboration with Fernando Sulichin. The production involves several entities, including Muse Films, New Element Media, and RatPac Entertainment. The film initially premiered in theaters on January 30 before moving to streaming on March 9.

Critical reception of the original documentary has been largely negative, a factor that may shape audience expectations for the new episodes. Owen Gleiberman, the chief film critic for Variety, described the movie as a cheeseball infomercial of staggering inertia. He argued that the portrayal of the First Lady was overly orchestrated and staged, noting that the film felt stitched together from innocuous outtakes from a reality show. Gleiberman suggested the production should have been titled Day of the Living Tradwife.

Amazon is currently promoting the series with a new trailer that offers a glimpse into the exclusive content. The platform aims to use the two-episode format to provide a more detailed look at the moments surrounding the inauguration, distinguishing the series from the single-feature presentation released earlier this year.