The Australians aren't playing very nice with Melania's Movie.
Anon came across article saying in one cinema only one ticket was presold.
So anon asked grok to look into marketing in AUS and compare.
This is what Grok found.
In Australia specifically, however, the marketing appears to have been much more limited and not comprehensive at all:No reports mention targeted Australian TV ads, billboards, outdoor campaigns, or local media blitzes tied to the film.
Coverage from Australian outlets (e.g., news.com.au, 9News, AFR) focuses almost entirely on the poor pre-sale ticket numbers (e.g., just one pre-sale ticket sold across all Hoyts sessions nationwide, zero in many sessions/locations) and describes the local release as on track to "bomb" or be "humiliating."
The film is only in a limited number of screens (e.g., select Hoyts locations ~12, Palace ~6, Reading ~14), with major chains like Village and Event opting out entirely—no indication of aggressive local push to fill those gaps.
Any Australian promotion seems to have relied on the spillover from the global campaign (trailers, online buzz, Trump-related mentions), but it clearly didn't translate to demand here, with critics and media noting complete disinterest among local audiences.
Compared to other films, this was not on par—especially for Australia:For a typical documentary (even high-profile ones like those from Michael Moore or concert films), marketing is far more modest, often under $5-10 million globally, focused on niche audiences via targeted digital/social, festival buzz, or limited theatrical runs.
Blockbuster narrative features get big spends, but $35 million+ is outlier territory even for them in many markets—here it's treated as excessive for the genre.
In Australia, foreign films (especially non-blockbusters or politically charged docs) often get minimal localized marketing unless there's strong domestic appeal (e.g., no big Aussie stars, no cultural tie-in). This one got virtually none beyond basic cinema listings, leading to the dismal uptake despite the huge global budget.
Overall, the marketing was comprehensive and lavish on a global/US scale (arguably over-the-top, with some critics questioning motives like currying favor), but it was far from comprehensive in Australia—more like minimal or negligible localized effort—which aligns with the extremely poor early ticket sales reported there.