Sen. Elizabeth Warren is spearheading a congressional probe into Amazon’s $40 million purchase of First Lady Melania Trump’s documentary, questioning whether the technology company broke anti-bribery statutes in a bid to curry favor with the Trump administration.
The Democrat from Massachusetts, alongside Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia and three additional legislators, forwarded correspondence to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy requesting responses about the transaction by March 30. Central to the probe: why Amazon MGM Studios offered such an extraordinary amount for “Melania,” roughly $26 million above Disney, the second-highest offer, positioning it among the priciest non-concert documentaries ever made.
The monetary obligation stretches well past the licensing acquisition. Amazon designated a $35 million promotional budget for the production, elevating the complete expenditure to $75 million. Analysts from the industry have raised doubts about the business logic supporting the offer, especially given that Amazon does not expect to recover its outlay on the venture.
Around 70 percent of the $40 million purchase price, approximately $28 million, will flow straight to Melania Trump. The film, which chronicles the first lady during the weeks preceding President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, generated $7 million in its debut weekend notwithstanding scathing critiques from reviewers who characterized it as “favorable propaganda.” On Rotten Tomatoes, the production maintains merely an 11 percent critic score. The production eventually collected $16.7 million in overall box office revenues.
To contextualize Amazon’s expenditure, the Oscar-winning documentary “Summer of Soul” was purchased by Searchlight Pictures and Hulu for north of $12 million in 2021—at that time regarded as a record-breaking figure. Amazon’s compensation for “Melania” exceeds that amount by more than threefold.
The legislators’ correspondence contends that Amazon has significant monetary interests in matters awaiting determination before the Trump administration. The corporation recently concluded a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) lawsuit regarding misleading Prime subscription methods in September 2025, consenting to remit $2.5 billion—encompassing $1.5 billion in customer reimbursements and a $1 billion civil fine. Amazon additionally confronts another active FTC lawsuit charging unlawful monopolization of internet retail, with proceedings anticipated in 2027.
“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.
Warren proceeded further in a public declaration, saying: “Giant corporations shouldn’t be able to bribe their way out of paying taxes or fines they’ve been issued for breaking the law. If Amazon is bribing the Trump administration, the company and its executives should be subject to criminal penalties.”
The association between President Trump and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has markedly improved during Trump’s second term. Amazon contributed $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund, and Bezos participated in the Jan. 20, 2025, swearing-in ceremony. The technology entrepreneur has made visible attempts to repair relations with Trump following years of public antagonism during the first administration.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited Bezos’s Blue Origin space facility in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Feb. 2, 2026, as part of the Pentagon’s “Arsenal of Freedom” tour. Hegseth heaped praise on the space venture, telling Bezos, “Blue Origin is going to do plenty of winning.” The visit underscored the administration’s deepening ties with Bezos’s aerospace ambitions.
A separate dispute over tariffs was swiftly resolved after Trump personally intervened. When reports indicated Amazon was considering showing how Trump’s tariffs were affecting retail prices, the company quickly backed down. President Trump praised the outcome, calling Bezos a “good guy” who “solved the problem very quickly.”
The investigation letter, also signed by Sen. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, Rep. Dan Goldman of New York, and Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington state, demands that Amazon explain the commercial rationale behind its investment. It also seeks all communications between the company, the Trumps, and administration officials related to the documentary.
Amazon has pushed back on bribery accusations, stating: “We licensed the film for one reason and one reason only—because we think customers are going to love it.”
Federal bribery law makes it illegal to offer anything of value to elected officials to influence official acts. The lawmakers have given Amazon until March 30 to respond to questions about its compliance framework for anti-bribery laws and all financial arrangements involved in the documentary production.
In a separate development, Bezos hosted Washington Post editors and reporters for a private lunch at his Washington, D.C. home on March 13, where he defended the acquisition. He told staff he was not personally involved in the “Melania” negotiations, denied the deal was an effort to curry favor with the Trump administration, and insisted the investment could still yield returns.
At his State of the Union address on Feb. 24, 2026, President Trump referred to his wife as a “movie star,” drawing attention to the documentary’s high-profile release. The investigation adds another layer of scrutiny to the growing ties between the Trump administration and major corporations seeking favorable regulatory and policy treatment.