"Melania" defied its low critic score and opened strong, taking in more than $7 million and making it the best opening for a documentary in a decade.
Recognizing that "everyone wants to know," Melania Trump gave filmmakers unprecedented access as she prepared herself, her husband, her family, and the White House for her husband's second term.
The documentary was widely panned by entertainment critics as a form of "propaganda" for the Trump administration, but verified audience users on the Rotten Tomatoes website largely praised the film, giving it a 99% approval rating.
Washington Times columnist Bob Knight says many of the headlines on Monday had some version of the phrase "defied expectations," because most journalists wanted the film to do poorly.
"Trump derangement syndrome is so deep-seated that they wanted to help sink this film," he submits. "You get the word out that nobody's watching it, nobody likes it – that should keep attendance down, they thought."
Knight remembers that no one heard much from Melania Trump in her husband's first term unless it was about her "Be Best" children's wellbeing initiative. Rumors abounded that she hated the White House, because critics found it hard to believe anyone could be happy while married to that man.
He says that is why the first First Lady to actually be a cover girl was almost literally on no covers.
"She's probably the best looking First Lady in history and is an actual model, but it seems that politics trumps everything," Knight gathers.
When Fox News' Rachel Campos-Duffy asked her what the unkind beauty world would take from the documentary before its release, Melania made it clear she was not concerned about her detractors.
"They could think whatever they want," she replied.
Amazon MGM Studios reportedly spent $40 million on the documentary, and another $35 million went to marketing. The studio intends to recoup these costs through licensing deals and upcoming plans to add the film to its Prime Video streaming service.
