{"id":398602,"date":"2026-01-30T10:52:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T10:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/398602\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T10:52:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T10:52:12","slug":"melania-documentary-live-movie-in-cinemas-after-most-of-trumps-kids-skip-premiere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/398602\/","title":{"rendered":"Melania documentary – live: Movie in cinemas after most of Trump\u2019s kids skip premiere"},"content":{"rendered":"

Melania Trump struggles to sum up her new film in three wordsYour support helps us to tell the story<\/p>\n

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The premiere for a new documentary about Melania Trump<\/a> took place last night, with guests including rapper Nicki Minaj in attendance but mainstream press barred from entering.<\/p>\n

The event took place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., which was referred to as the \u201cTrump-Kennedy Center\u201d on official invitations.<\/p>\n

While taking questions from reporters before the screening, President Donald Trump hit back at critics of the $40 million Amazon MGM paid for the rights to the documentary by saying: \u201cWell, I think they\u2019d have to go and ask President Obama, who got paid a lot of money and hasn’t done anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also present was the film\u2019s director, Brett Ratner<\/a>. Ratner is a controversial figure who has not worked in Hollywood since a string of sexual misconduct allegations in 2017, <\/a>and was recently pictured in the Epstein files.<\/a><\/p>\n

Others in attendance included Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz and Trump administration figures such as secretary of war Pete Hegseth, secretary of education Linda McMahon and secretary of health and human services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.<\/p>\n

Notable by their absence were most of Trump\u2019s children. Donald Trump Jr was present, but Barron Trump, the 19-year-old son he shares with Melania, was not.<\/p>\n

Despite the lavish premiere event, the film is not expected to become a box office hit when it is released nationwide. It has been predicted to earn between $1 million and $5 million on its opening weekend.<\/a><\/p>\n

Follow below for updates from the documentary premiere…<\/p>\n

<\/a>Mainstream press shut out of screening<\/p>\n

Variety<\/a> reports that journalists from The New York Times, The Washington Post, AP, Vanity Fair and dozens of other outlets were allowed to ask questions outside but were not permitted access to the screening itself.<\/p>\n

Per the publication, the only press invited in to see the film were Dan Ball and Peyton Drew of the far-right news channel One America News.<\/p>\n

\"\"(AFP\/Getty)<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 10:08<\/p>\n

<\/a>Trump hits out at Obama when questioned over documentary cost<\/p>\n

Asked on the premiere\u2019s event\u2019s black carpet what he would say to those who have been critical of the fact that Amazon paid $40m to acquire the rights for Melania, President Trump replied:<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I think they’d have to go and ask President Obama, who got paid a lot of money and hasn’t done anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Obama signed a production deal with Netflix in 2018 that has produced various film projects including American Factory, Leave the World Behind, and Crip Camp.<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 09:45<\/p>\n

<\/a>Barron, Ivanka and Eri Trump skip premiere<\/p>\n

The 19-year-old son of Melania and Donald Trump didn\u2019t attend his mother\u2019s big night \u2013 despite appearing in the documentary \u2013 but was thanked by Melania in a speech ahead of the screening.<\/p>\n

Ivanka, Trump\u2019s daughter from his previous marriage to Ivana Trump, was also a no-show alongside her husband Jared Kushner, with the president\u2019s other kids, Eric and Tiffany, also absent.<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 09:25<\/p>\n

<\/a>Who attended film premiere?<\/p>\n

Melania\u2019s documentary premiered on Thursday (29 January) at the Trump-Kennedy Center in Washington.<\/p>\n

Rapper (and noted Trump stan) Nicki Minaj<\/p>\n

Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana<\/p>\n

Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense<\/p>\n

Dr Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services<\/p>\n

United States Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro<\/p>\n

Lizzy Savetsky, influencer<\/p>\n

Melania Trump\u2019s father Viktor Knavs<\/p>\n

\"WASHINGTON,WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 29: (L-R) Special Presidential Envoy for Special Missions of the United States Richard Grenell, rapper Nicki Minaj, Maria Bartiromo, and Phil McGraw attend \u2018Melania\u2019 premiere (Photo by Samuel Corum\/Getty Images) (Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 09:07<\/p>\n

<\/a>Trump talks business at wife’s event<\/p>\n

It might have been his wife\u2019s time in the spotlight, but at the premiere of Melania, Trump couldn\u2019t help but talk business, revealing he\u2019ll be naming the next Federal Reserve today.<\/p>\n

He told Newsmax<\/a> at the event, held at the Trump-Kennedy Center, he\u2019d picked \u201ca very good choice\u201d \u2013 although he would say that.<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 08:40<\/p>\n

<\/a>The first screening in a local Vue<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s just say, it\u2019s not going to mirror the Barbenheimer craze of 2023.<\/p>\n

\"\"(Vue)<\/p>\n

Jacob Stolworthy30 January 2026 08:20<\/p>\n

<\/a>How did Nicki Minaj become Trump’s ‘number one fan’?\"SpecialSpecial Presidential Envoy for Special Missions of the United States Richard Grenell, rapper Nicki Minaj, Maria Bartiromo, and Phil McGraw attend the ‘Melania’ screening (Samuel Corum\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Nicki Minaj brought a touch of celebrity to the Melania screening at the Kennedy Center.<\/p>\n

She said earlier this week: \u201cI am probably the president\u2019s number one fan, and that\u2019s not going to change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s The Independent\u2019s Carsen Holaday on the controversies, feuds and fan backlash that reshaped the rapper\u2019s career:<\/p>\n

\"\"How Nicki Minaj went from Queen of Rap to controversial Trump cheerleader<\/a><\/p>\n

Once the unassailable \u2018Queen of Rap,\u2019 Nicki Minaj has grown increasingly estranged from the music industry \u2014 and embraced by conservatives \u2014 culminating in a public show of support for Donald Trump that stunned fans. Carsen Holaday traces the controversies, feuds and fan backlash that reshaped her career<\/p>\n

Kevin Perry30 January 2026 07:59<\/p>\n

<\/a>Brett Ratner and Marc Beckman pictured together at ‘Melania’ premiere\"\"(Dimitrios Kambouris\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

If Brett Ratner<\/a> succeeds in using Melania to revive his career, he\u2019ll have Melania\u2019s senior advisor Marc Beckman to thank.<\/p>\n

Beckman and Ratner have known each other since the former\u2019s advertising agency hired the director in 2007 for a provocative jeans campaign starring a topless Heidi Klum.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe understood how to bring this cinematic, stylized quality to the film that the First Lady envisioned,\u201d Beckman recently told The Times.<\/p>\n

Kevin Perry30 January 2026 07:00<\/p>\n

<\/a>Most of President Trump\u2019s children, including Barron, appear to skip event\"\"(Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Among the notable absentees for last night\u2019s premiere were most of President Trump\u2019s children.<\/p>\n

That includes Barron Trump, the son he shares with Melania. The 19-year-old rarely makes public appearances.<\/p>\n

It had previously been reported that Eric and Ivanka Trump were unlikely to attend the event.<\/p>\n

Donald Trump Jr. however did attend.<\/p>\n

Kevin Perry30 January 2026 06:00<\/p>\n

<\/a>Melania struggles to sum up film in three wordsMelania Trump struggles to sum up her new film in three words<\/p>\n

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