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Lake Oswego Theater Pulls “Melania” Documentary After Marketing Misfire
Lake Oswego, OR – The Lake Theater & Cafe in Lake Oswego found itself in hot water this week, leading to the abrupt cancellation of showings for the Amazon MGM Studios-backed documentary, “Melania.” The film, centered on Melania Trump’s role as First Lady leading up to her husband’s potential second inauguration, was pulled after the theater’s rather unconventional marketing tactics rubbed Amazon the wrong way.
According to a report by Variety on Wednesday, February 4th, the local theater had promoted the documentary with playful – and perhaps provocative – messaging. One marquee read, “Does Melania wear Prada?
Find out Friday!” Another, quoting Sun Tzu, stated, “To defeat your enemy.
You must know them. Melania.”
These quirky taglines, intended to drum up local interest, seemingly backfired.
Jordan Perry, the theater’s manager, revealed to The Oregonian that Amazon contacted the establishment directly, requesting the film be shelved. “The studio was not happy and/or did not appreciate my take on marketing their film to our own public,” Perry explained. A source close to the “Melania” production further confirmed the film’s removal from the Oregon theater.
In a candid and humorous update, the theater’s marquee was subsequently changed to reflect the situation: “Amazon called. Our marquee made them mad.
All “Melania” showings cancelled. Show your support at Whole Foods instead.
Join Amazon Prime for Free Two-Day Shipping.” The Lake Theater & Cafe also took to its official Instagram account, sharing photos of the updated marquee and a lengthy caption addressing the drama.
“Got a call that the higher ups (i.e., at Amazon) were upset with how our marquee marketed their movie (i.e., Melania), that, per them, Sunday would be its last day here,” the Instagram post read. The theater also acknowledged receiving “countless emails and voicemails and Google / Yelp reviews… wondering why the hell we had Melania here, or disdaining our disparaging of her.”
The post concluded with a lighthearted jab at the situation: “Now that it’s prematurely over, the plug pulled on us not from public outcry (always listening, thank you) but by some corporate executive (fair enough, sorry AMZN, please don’t cancel my Prime), Jordan figured he’d …say something? Link in bio. TLDR: welp.”
The Brett Ratner-helmed documentary, which reportedly included creative input from the former model, captured the 20 days leading up to Trump’s second inauguration. Amazon had acquired the rights to produce and distribute “Melania” for a reported $40 million in 2025.
Since its January 30th premiere, “Melania” has faced a barrage of criticism and low ratings, despite exceeding initial box office predictions for its opening weekend, grossing just over $7 million in U.S. theaters. The film’s distribution has also been plagued with issues, with some theaters reporting delays in receiving the movie for its scheduled opening day screenings.