Melania Had Herself a Movie Night!
Hours after Alex Pretti was shot and killed by federal agents, Erika Kirk, Tim Cook, Queen Rania of Jordan, and Tony Robbins joined Melania at the White House to watch her new documentary. Fun!
Photo: Getty Images Politics
If you were wondering how Team Trump spends a weekend where (almost) the entire nation is reeling from the death of another American civilian killed by federal agents, well: they turn off the lights, tuck in with Melania-branded popcorn boxes and Melania-branded cookies, and tune in for a private screening of the First Lady’s new splashy, Amazon-produced, Brett Ratner-directed documentary. Of course.
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On Saturday, Melania Trump hosted a 70-person screening to show off her new film, which is coming to theaters January 30. The guest list included Erika Kirk, Tim Cook, Queen Rania of Jordan, New York Stock Exchange CEO Lynn Martin, Mike Tyson, and Tony Robbins. The attire was black tie, and guests arrived to a full military band playing “Melania’s Waltz,” composed for the film by Tony Neiman. In addition to the popcorn and cookies, guests were served black-and-white macaroons, black-and-white chocolate-covered pretzels, and white cake pops. I guess they must have run out of black dye.
Here’s the very little we do know about the film: it tracks Melania for 20 days between Trump’s presidential campaign and his second inauguration in 2025, and she’s probably going to be wearing sunglasses for most of it. The $75 million movie is reportedly expected to gross around $5 million, which suggests it’s also going to be an absolute flop. It also marks Ratner’s first film since he was accused of sexual misconduct and harassment in 2017. He reportedly lived at Mar-a-Lago for months during filming.
No matter for Melania, who has already splashed an estimated $35 million on marketing, on top of the $40 million deal Amazon MGM Studios struck with her to make it. “I am deeply humbled to have been surrounded by an inspiring room of friends, family, and cultural iconoclasts at the White House last night,” Melania tweeted after the screening. “Each of these individuals each brought their unique vision to the world, making a lasting impression.”
Alas, the optics could not have been worse. Hours before the screening, 37-year-old Alex Pretti—an ICU nurse who worked at the VA—was shot and killed by federal agents while attempting to assist protesters in Minneapolis. Once again, the White House is insisting that what Americans can plainly see and hear in multiple videos of the shooting is wrong, and attempting to label Pretti a domestic terrorist.
“Today DHS assassinated a VA nurse in the street, Bondi is attempting to extort voter files, and half the country is bracing on the eve of a potentially crippling ice storm with FEMA gutted. So what is the President up to? Having a movie night at the White House,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) wrote on Twitter. “He’s unfit.”
Melania’s screening took place in a makeshift theater in the East Room, as the original White House Family Theater—created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1942—was demolished by Trump in October to make room for his stupid ballroom. Notably, Melania said nothing at the time of the East Wing’s demolition, long considered the official home for the First Lady’s institutional domain dating back to Eleanor Roosevelt. Oh well. At least the popcorn machine survived.
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