If you subscribe to the idea that there has been a cultural “vibe shift,” going in the direction of Donald Trump and Trumpism, the story about Amazon acquiring a new documentary about Melania Trump, with Brett Ratner directing and a huge reported press tag, is very emblematic.
During Trump’s first term as president, he was frequently at odds with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, due in part to what he saw as critical coverage by the Bezos-owned Washington Post. In 2019, Amazon claimed that Trump had interfered with a Pentagon contract to retaliate against Bezos. That same year, there were even reports that the public exposure related to Bezos’ love life may have been a political hit job.
Amazon’s Hollywood arm, during the first Trump era, was not known for producing content that directly flattered MAGA values, unless you count the inherent conservatism of such “Dad TV” mainstays as Jack Ryan and Reacher.
Also during the first Trump Administration came the #MeToo movement, which appeared to end the careers of several major Hollywood figures, one of whom was Rush Hour director Brett Ratner, who six women accused of sexual misconduct in late 2017. Ratner has denied the claims; as of 2023 was reportedly living in exile in Israel.
New details on the Melania Trump project that Amazon bought, including the price tag and…it’s not just one project. ⬇️⬇️ https://t.co/fMfYRdsM0M
— Matthew Belloni (@MattBelloni) January 7, 2025
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Jeff Bezos — who is no longer the CEO of Amazon but remains its executive chairman, as well as its largest shareholder — appears to no longer be a Trump enemy. He dined with Trump and Elon Musk at Mar-a-Lago, and announced plans to donate $1 million to the Trump inauguration.
And it was another sign of a big change when the news broke a couple of weeks ago that Amazon had agreed to acquire an authorized documentary about once and future First Lady Melania Trump- and that the director was none other than Ratner, whose most recent Hollywood directorial credit was for the Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Hercules movie in 2014.
In addition to the sexual misconduct claims, Ratner was pushed out of a gig producing the Academy Awards in 2011, after he was accused of using an antigay slur. And Ratner, for a time prior to his downfall, had a movie producing partnership with Steven Mnuchin, who was the Treasury Secretary in Trump’s first term.
Brett Ratner is directing the Melania Trump documentary for Prime Video, which means this wire image should immediately be added to every news outlet’s library. pic.twitter.com/x2A6YJQzWn
— Sonny Bunch (@SonnyBunch) January 5, 2025
Now, Puck’s Matthew Belloni has some more details about the Amazon/Melania deal. Amazon has paid $40 million for the film — an unusually large sum in the normally low-budget world of documentary filmmaking — which will include “a small theatrical release and then appear on Prime Video, plus a previously undisclosed two-to-three-episode follow-up docuseries on the first lady.” In addition to serving as the subject of the film, Melania will also be credited as an executive producer, which is indication of how impartial the project will be.
“It’s unclear how much the first lady is personally being paid to participate and ‘produce’ this project while her husband is in office, but I’m betting it’s a big chunk of that $40 million,” Puck said.
Puck also reported that Disney and Paramount were among the bidders for the Melania documentary.
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
