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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMelania Trump Documentary Pulled From South African Theaters
Melania, the new documentary about the first lady, scheduled to open worldwide on Friday, has been pulled from theaters in South Africa after the films local distributor said on Wednesday that it would no longer release it.
Based on recent developments, weve taken the decision to not go ahead with a theatrical release in territory, said Thobashan Govindarajulu, the head of sales and marketing for the distributor, Filmfinity.
Mr. Govindarajulu declined to say what recent developments had led to the decision, but said that the company was not pressured or asked to pull the film. That was our decision, he said. The decision was first reported by the South African outlet News24.
The promotion of the film about Melania Trump has been as polarizing as her husband, President Trump, who has touted the movie as a must watch. But theaters have reported thin advanced ticket sales, despite Amazon investing $40 million for the rights to the film and spending tens of millions more on marketing, which industry analysts saw as a big risk.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/28/world/africa/melania-trump-documentary-south-africa-cancel.html
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What Mr. Govindarajulu didn't say, but wanted to was, "We were not going to waste screens on a film literally no one was going to pay to see."
Permanut
(8,091 posts)"The only people who are calling this a 'must watch' are the people in it".
sheshe2
(96,390 posts)So sad.....

You don't really want to immigrate to S. Africa.
Why?
Because you are black.
Free South Africa, ya dumb son of a bitch!! Ya dumb son of a bitch!
pfitz59
(12,448 posts)We talked for about half an hour. Very nice man.
LilElf70
(1,430 posts)This is life changing tooooooo fucking bad.
sarcasm
Norrrm
(4,265 posts)llmart
(17,402 posts)wolfie001
(7,291 posts)They should do the same. Thanks, but no thanks
FakeNoose
(40,508 posts)Also it's opening in the US on Friday.
I find it hard to believe that any US theaters have actually booked it?
Maybe the Kennedy Center whoops - the Chump Kennedy Center - they might have it, with no tickets sold.

Attilatheblond
(8,469 posts)And... well ya never know who might be stalking around the White House
FakeNoose
(40,508 posts)Not that I care.... Does anyone?
LiberalLovinLug
(14,600 posts)No Democrat or other No Trumper will go see it.
But even in the MAGAT crowd, I don't think she's personally that popular. She's hardly ever in public supporting her fat orange husband, she's a euro fer'ner who still can't speak English properly.
FakeNoose
(40,508 posts)... so why did Jeff Bezos throw in $75 million? Because money means so little to someone so filthy rich, that's why. He is happy to donate that and buy "friendship" with Chump. I doubt that he will even go to the opening.
Oh I almost forgot. They're offering this horrid movie on Amazon Prime. (yawn)
As a personal note - I have several friends with foreign accents. Many of my best friends are born in Europe, Germany and elsewhere. I would never fault a person on their accent. But that's just me.
LiberalLovinLug
(14,600 posts)Just to be clear, I don't mind an accent. It's her inability to even use proper grammar after years living in the US: "Be Best!"
Unless she's plagerizing someone else's good grammar
biocube
(184 posts)NM
mysteryowl
(8,497 posts)FakeNoose
(40,508 posts)That's how it works
Grammy23
(6,099 posts)If the movie bombs. But lets get real. She already collected her $40 million to comfort her. So really what does she actually care? Its not like she has to depend on sales for her cut. Like any good gold digger, she got her money up front.
purr-rat beauty
(1,052 posts)This movie could be Inglorious...