In another remarkably opportune turn for the upcoming president, Amazon has decided to create a documentary surrounding his spouse, Melania Trump. This film, which Puck has labeled a “vanity” endeavor, will offer an “unprecedented glimpse behind the scenes” of the First Lady, according to Amazon. To add oddity to the situation, the documentary is slated to be directed by Brett Ratner, the ex-action film director whose professional journey was mostly dismantled due to allegations of sexual misconduct that emerged during the #MeToo movement.

The news of this documentary was initially unveiled by Semafor, who mentioned that filming has already commenced and is anticipated to have a short stint in theaters before arriving on Amazon’s streaming service, Prime. Puck has later disclosed the financial specifics of the arrangement, revealing that Amazon has disbursed $40 million to secure Ratner’s film, as per several sources. Melania will additionally take on an executive producer role in the project, and, as Matthew Belloni from Puck articulates, “It’s uncertain how much the first lady is personally earning to be involved and ‘produce’ this venture while her spouse holds office, but my wager is that it’s a significant portion of that $40 million.” Amazon also intends to produce a multi-part docuseries on Melania subsequent to the documentary, Belloni notes.

It might be that Amazon merely coincidentally picked this exact moment to focus on the admittedly enigmatic persona that is Melania Trump… or, it might be that Amazon—akin to numerous other tech firms—is currently exerting efforts to ingratiate itself with her spouse as he rises to the presidency for a second term. Noteworthy, Amazon is also among some major tech corporations that have recently contributed $1 million to Trump’s inauguration celebrations. Meta, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, and Apple’s Tim Cook have all made comparable donations.

By most perspectives, Amazon’s latest film is anticipated to be nothing more than a glorification of the First Lady, with Semafor describing it as a “warm embrace” and Puck dubbing it “quite a payday for Mrs. Trump.” It’s also, ostensibly, a platform for her to share her narrative. Despite a recent book contract and her husband being one of the most renowned individuals worldwide, Melania has predominantly bypassed the limelight. At the same time, she has also fiercely shielded her public persona. In 2017, Trump received two distinct settlements—one from the Daily Mail, and the other from a Maryland blogger, Webster Tarpley—in defamation actions that entailed the dissemination of claims that she had previously worked for an escort service before embarking on a modeling career. Both parties later withdrew their reports and issued apologies.

The manner in which Ratner became involved is somewhat ambiguous, though Belloni highlights that the director is reputed to have “connections to Trumpworld figures,” most notably Steven Mnuchin, who was the treasury secretary during Trump’s initial term and formerly collaborated with Ratner at his RatPac-Dune Entertainment. The director has not made a movie since 2017, the year he was accused by multiple renowned actresses of sexual harassment and, in one incident, sexual assault. Ratner has refuted the accusations. He has been residing in Israel since 2023.