MGM Says Melania's 67 Percent Drop-Off Is Good, Actually

"added another $2.37 million to its box office in its second week of release. Still pretty good numbers for a documentary. Well, a doc that isn't about a musician. Or nature. People like nature. The documentary about the first lady is still running in 2,003 theaters, so the PTA isn't exactly at PTA levels. It's also a 67 percent drop-off, which is almost as bad as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania."

"In what called an "unusual move," Wilson gave a statement about how Melania's box office is great, and things are great, and isn't that great? " Melania's strong theatrical performance is a critical first moment that validates our wholistic distribution strategy," he said, "building awareness, engagement, and provides momentum ahead of the film's eventual debut on Prime Video." Additionally, Wilson also defended the theatrical window as a concept in his statement."

The Melania documentary added $2.37 million in its second week and remains in 2,003 theaters despite a 67 percent drop. The film's domestic cumulative total sits at $13.35 million while Amazon reportedly paid $40 million for acquisition and spent $35 million on marketing. The week-two decline was compared to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Amazon MGM's head of domestic distribution framed the theatrical run as validating a holistic distribution strategy that builds awareness and momentum ahead of a Prime Video debut and noted exit data showing intent to rewatch and interest in a docuseries.

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