Melania Trump Earns $10.7M from Flop Amazon Documentary

Former first lady Melania Trump has scored a massive payday from the Amazon-backed documentary "Melania," despite its poor box office performance. According to Donald Trump's newly released annual financial disclosure, Melania personally pocketed $10.71 million from the project. That's a stunning sum considering the film grossed only about $16 million worldwide — meaning her fee alone topped half of the total ticket sales.

The disclosure also reveals she earned roughly $521,000 from her memoir and over $6 million from NFTs and other collectibles. This brings her total reported income from these ventures to a significant amount, highlighting her ongoing commercial activities outside of politics.

The documentary "Melania" has been controversial from the start. Reports of vandalized posters, a star-studded premiere at the Kennedy Center, and brutal reviews plagued the film. Audience response was mixed, despite Amazon's reported $75 million investment in the project.

The controversy even reached Washington, D.C., where members of Congress demanded answers from Amazon about whether the deal was a legitimate business arrangement or an attempt to curry favor with the Trump administration. President Trump insisted the documentary was Melania's project, not his, while Amazon founder Jeff Bezos repeatedly denied any "pay-to-play" arrangement.

Despite the box office flop, Melania Trump walked away with $10.71 million from Amazon, making the deal highly lucrative for her personally. Experts note that such deals raise questions about transparency in financial relationships between political figures and major corporations, especially as Trump eyes a potential return to the White House.

It remains unclear whether Melania Trump plans future projects with Amazon or other streaming platforms, but her ability to monetize her public image despite negative reactions is evident. The financial disclosure has finally put a price tag on her documentary earnings, which will likely fuel further debate in the media and political circles.