Jeff Bezos calls Amazon's $40m Melania film a good business decision'

"Jeff Bezos has defended Amazon's controversial Melania documentary as a good business decision while denying any personal involvement. The Amazon founder and executive chairman was asked about the film during an interview on CNBC this week. The film, which followed the first lady in the period before Donald Trump's second inauguration, was purchased by the company for $40m with Melania herself making a reported $28m. Amazon also spent about $35m on marketing."

"Bezos, who also attended the inauguration, has rejected claims that he engineered the deal. The Melania thing is a falsehood that will not die, he said. The billionaire also added: I see it reported all the time that somehow I was involved in this but clarified that I had nothing to do with that. Bezos said that it was just not correct to say that buying the film was a way of currying favour with the administration but I can see why people say this."

"By the way, it appears it was a good business decision, Bezos said. It did very well in theaters. It's done very well on streaming. People are very curious about Melania. So even though I had nothing to do with it, it appears that the Amazon team made a very wise business decision. While the film did feature in Amazon's in-house list of most-watched films upon streaming release, no data has been publicly released."

"The film, directed by Brett Ratner, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, was released without being screened for press in January. It made $16.7m worldwide, failing to recoup its budget. By the way, it appears it was a good business decision, Bezos said. It did very well in theaters. It's done very well on streaming."

Amazon bought the Melania documentary for $40 million, with Melania reportedly receiving $28 million, and Amazon spending about $35 million on marketing. Bezos denied engineering the deal and said claims of personal involvement were not correct. He rejected the idea that the purchase was meant to curry favor with the Trump administration, while acknowledging why people might think that. The film, directed by Brett Ratner, was released without press screening and earned $16.7 million worldwide, failing to recoup its budget. Bezos said it did very well in theaters and on streaming, and that audiences were curious about Melania. Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the arrangement as pay-to-play and raised federal anti-bribery law concerns, while Amazon denied wrongdoing.

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