'Melania' is expanding to over 2,000 movie theaters after box-office success

"Melania," the Brett Ratner-directed documentary from Amazon MGM Studios, will play on 2,003 screens this weekend after a better-than-expected $7 million opening on 1,778 screens the weekend of January 30. Amazon declined to comment. Exhibitor Relations box-office analyst Jeff Bock said, "The abundance of press worked wonders for 'Melania' as the film expands to over 2,000 theaters this weekend.

Whether or not that will help its legs remains to be seen. Super Bowl weekend is a notoriously slow time at movie theaters." The film faces stiff competition from NFL Super Bowl LX between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. The doc's $7 million opening was a 10-year best for a documentary released in theaters.

Whether Amazon makes back the $40 million it paid to acquire "Melania" and the $35 million it spent on marketing is another story. A religious freedom group said some US military were "pressured" by their commanding officers to see the movie.

United States, Seattle; New England