Elizabeth Warren calls Amazon's $40 million bid for 'Melania' a 'bribery in plain sight'
Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren is accusing Amazon MGM Studios of committing "bribery in plain sight" after the media giant spent lavishly to land a documentary about First Lady Melania Trump. However the company disagrees with that assessment and maintains it has done nothing wrong.
In March, the Massachusetts senator and Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) led an investigation into whether Amazon MGM's investment in "Melania" was "part of a corrupt pay-to-play arrangement with the Trump administration."
That's after Amazon MGM paid $40 million to acquire - and another $35 million to market - "Melania," an unprecedented sum considering documentaries aren't box office juggernauts. Warren pointed out that Amazon MGM's offer was $26 million above the next-highest bidder, Disney. After "Melania" opened theatrically in January, the film ended its run with $16.6 million at the global box office. It's an impressive result for the genre but nowhere near enough for Amazon MGM to break even on the film since exhibitors keep half of ticket sales. To note, plenty of films (especially in post-pandemic times) fail to turn a profit in theaters.
"The fact that Amazon is seeking favorable treatment from the Trump Administration while paying a far-above-market sum to produce and promote the Trump family's film raises questions about Amazon's exposure under federal anti-bribery law," the lawmakers wrote in a letter to Amazon on March 15. "The American people deserve assurance that powerful corporations are not using their financial resources to gain political influence or favorable treatment at public expense - and that these corporations are not violating federal bribery laws."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/elizabeth-warren-calls-amazon-s-40-million-bid-for-melania-a-bribery-in-plain-sight/ar-AA20MgXd
They're really trying to push this on Prime. I've watched a movie on the channel and at the end it says Melania is up next. No thanks, click.