MELANIA DOC PULLED IN $10.71M IN LICENSING, FILING SHOWED
A financial disclosure showed the Melania Trump documentary generated $10.71 million in licensing income.
The annual disclosure was released by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics on June 30, 2026, and covered 2025 income. It listed the money as tied to the licensing agreement for “Melania,” the Trumps’ earnings from the film, USA Today reported.
President Donald Trump has called the documentary his wife’s deal, not his, TMZ reported.
“That was done with my wife,” Trump said.
Where the money came from
Amazon MGM Studios paid $40 million to acquire the film. The movie followed Melania Trump in the days before the 2025 inauguration.
Trade publications put Amazon’s marketing spend at a further $35 million, a figure the production disputed, The Washington Times reported.
The film was made by Melania Trump’s production company, Muse Films, and directed by Brett Ratner. It opened in theaters on January 30, 2026, after a star-studded premiere at the Kennedy Center.
The reviews were brutal, the audience response was mixed and posters were vandalized, TMZ reported.
The film grossed about $16.6 million worldwide, Variety reported. Amazon later put it on Prime Video.
The same filing listed $521,161 in licensing income tied to Melania Trump’s memoir. It also showed $6 million in net proceeds from NFTs and other collectibles.
Yahoo Finance reported that Melania Trump earned more than $17.2 million in 2025 from the documentary, the book and the NFTs combined.
What happened next
Members of Congress demanded answers from Amazon about whether the project was a legitimate business deal or an effort to curry favor with the Trump administration, TMZ reported.
Democratic lawmakers raised concerns that the spending could amount to a “pay-to-play arrangement,” Yahoo Finance reported. They said they feared it was a way to “gain political influence or favorable treatment.”
Amazon pushed back in a statement. “We licensed the film for one reason and one reason only — because we think customers are going to love it,” the company said.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has repeatedly denied any pay-to-play arrangement, TMZ reported.
Separately, R. Kelly asked President Trump to commute his prison sentence for sex abuse.
