A Portland-area movie theater has found itself in hot water after being barred from showing Melania Trump’s self-titled documentary due to disrespectful signage on its marquee.

The Lake Theater & Cafe in Lake Oswego, Oregon, announced earlier this week that Amazon MGM Studios contacted them by phone to revoke their authorization to screen the film. The documentary, which follows the First Lady for 20 days leading up to President Donald Trump’s inauguration for his second term, was pulled after the theater displayed snarky messages on its marquee. Following the call, the theater updated its signage to inform guests of the cancellation.

Critics of the theater’s actions see this as a clear case of self-inflicted consequences for mocking a public figure who deserves respect. The marquee messages, including “TO DEFEAT THE ENEMY, YOU MUST KNOW THEM” and a jab about whether Melania wears Prada, were seen as petty and unnecessary, the Daily Mail reported. This isn’t just about a movie; it’s about the left’s obsession with tearing down anyone tied to the Trump name.

Marquee Mockery Sparks Immediate Backlash

The theater’s manager, Jordan Perry, admitted to receiving countless complaints from patrons, some questioning why the film was even being shown, while others criticized the decision to disparage Melania Trump. It’s telling that a business would risk alienating its audience just to score cheap political points. Clearly, not everyone in Portland appreciated the so-called humor.

Perry defended his choice to screen the documentary, claiming the film market was barren and he needed content to “fill a screen.” He called the documentary a “vanity piece” and suggested it was amusing to show at his “anti-establishment” cinema. This kind of smug attitude reveals a deeper disdain for anything outside the progressive bubble.

One of Perry’s justifications was particularly revealing: “I mean, it just seems so weird that it even exists (who wants a movie about Melania lol?), and wouldn’t it then be exponentially weirder, to the point of being funny, to show it here, at your obviously anti-establishment, occasionally troublemaking, neighborhood cinema?” That’s not clever; it’s just childish. Mocking the First Lady for a documentary that, by the way, grossed $7 million and outperformed Hollywood expectations, shows how out of touch some folks are.

Amazon Steps In, Theater Feels Heat

After Amazon’s decision to pull the film, the theater updated its marquee again, this time with a message whining about the ban. Perry speculated that they’ve been blacklisted by the studio, as if they’re some kind of martyr for free speech. In reality, businesses face consequences when they bite the hand that feeds them.

Perry also tried to walk back some of the venom, insisting he doesn’t view Melania as “the enemy” or “the devil,” while still taking shots at political tensions and suggesting both Trump and Melania lean into their “villainy.” This half-hearted apology doesn’t erase the initial disrespect. It’s just damage control after the fact.

Some moviegoers, predictably, cheered Amazon’s move to yank the film from the theater’s lineup. Others, however, saw the incident as a reason to double down on supporting the venue for its edgy stance. This just proves how divided reactions are when ideology trumps common decency.

Melania Documentary Defies Hollywood Expectations

Despite the controversy, Melania’s documentary has been a surprising success, raking in $7 million in ticket sales across the US and Canada during its opening weekend. It’s been hailed as the best-performing theatrical documentary release since 2012, excluding concert films. That’s a slap in the face to Hollywood elites who likely assumed no one would care about the First Lady’s story.

The theater’s history of provocative displays, including a 2024 marquee for the sci-fi horror film Alien Romulus that read “IN THIS CASE ABORTION IS OK,” shows this wasn’t a one-off stunt. They’ve built a brand on pushing buttons, especially with a customer base Perry admits leans heavily left. No surprise, then, that their messaging caters to that crowd.

Perry’s comments about political division, including his claim that Trump wasn’t part of the national discourse for a time yet the country remained split, miss the mark. The left’s relentless culture war tactics have fueled much of that rift, and blaming Trump or Melania for “playing into villainy” is just a lazy excuse for bad behavior.

Cultural Divide on Full Display

Let’s not forget Melania’s own moments of controversy, like wearing a jacket with “I really don’t care, do u?” to a migrant detention center in 2018, which Perry referenced as evidence of her so-called villainy. That jacket was likely a jab at media hysteria, not a dismissal of real suffering, but the left loves to spin it otherwise. It’s just another example of narrative over nuance.

What’s next for The Lake Theater & Cafe might be a lesson in humility, or at least in picking battles wisely. Amazon’s firm response could signal to other venues that disrespecting content creators or their subjects won’t be tolerated. Good for them for drawing a line in the sand.

This whole fiasco underscores a broader truth: the cultural divide isn’t just political, it’s personal. When a small theater in Oregon can’t resist turning a documentary into a punchline, it shows how deep the disdain runs for anything tied to Trump. But with the film’s box office success, it’s clear plenty of Americans are hungry for a different perspective—one Hollywood and Portland hipsters can’t suppress.