Fact check: Did 'Melania' review say if people were shown film on plane, they would walk out?

WASHINGTON, DC: Recently, a viral rumor claimed that the long-running Hollywood trade magazine Variety published a review of "Melania," a new documentary about First Lady Melania Trump, days before the film's official release.

As per the rumor, the magazine mentioned in its review, "If they showed this film on a plane, people would still walk out." But is there any truth to this rumor? Let us find out below.

Claim: Variety reviewed film 'Melania' saying people would walk out if shown on plane

A Facebook user shared an image of Melania Trump and wrote, "Best review ever. On the Netflix Melania 'documentary': 'If they showed this film on a plane, people would still walk out.' -Variety."

Similarly, an X user shared a GIF of President Donald Trump and Melania dancing and wrote in the caption, "Best review ever. On the Amazons Melania 'documentary': 'If they showed this film on a plane, people would still walk out.' - Variety." 

The claim also circulated across different social media platforms, such as Threads.

Interestingly, the film was recently withdrawn from South African cinemas. As per a report, 'Melania' was scheduled for local distribution in South Africa by Filmfinity and for release across major cinemas in the country.

Thobashan Govindarajulu, Filmfinity’s head of sales and distribution, told the New York Times, "Based on recent developments, we’ve taken the decision not go ahead with a theatrical release in the territory."

Fact check: False, review was incorrectly attributed to Variety

The claims made in the online rumors are false, as the purported review of 'Melania' was incorrectly attributed to Variety.

As per news reports, the film was set to premiere in theaters on Friday, January 30 and at the time of filing this story, reviews by professional movie critics had not yet been published.

Furthermore, movie review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes showed no reviews listed for the film as of January 29. 

Moreover, film studios often impose embargoes on movie reviews, and reviews for 'Melania' may have been subject to one until its release on Friday. However, it still cannot be confirmed.

Meanwhile, a Variety spokesperson informed Snopes on January 29 that it had not published a review of 'Melania' that included the quote.

)A search of Variety's website also showed no results for a review of the documentary, but showed Variety's earlier reporting on the film, including that it had been pulled from theaters in South Africa.

However, an identical version of the quote was incorrectly attributed to Variety and circulated before 2026 which was used to criticize other movies, most prominently Disney's 'Snow White'.