Reports have been flooding in about yet another controversy surrounding Brett Ratner’s Melania. Reports suggest that service members from at least eight bases were pressured into watching the documentary, and a lot of servicemen feared retribution from their superiors if they failed to comply. According to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), the number of active-duty service members who have been allegedly ‘forced’ to watch the film is in the thousands.
MAGA-aligned military commanders are pressuring enlisted service members to go to the Melania movie and bring their families. Troops at 8 different bases have complained. https://t.co/Sf2ylZAf2P pic.twitter.com/dSGJ1mrNZm
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) February 7, 2026
This harks back to reports of similar occurrences during the production of the film. Amazon employees were reportedly told that refusing to work on the film could jeopardize their employment with the company, as reported by the New York Post.
The film is directed by Brett Ratner, who rose to fame with his Rush Hour films, starring Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan. Brett’s last project before Melania was 2014’s Hercules, starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. The Hollywood director fell from grace during the MeToo movement, where he was accused of sexual misconduct by Olivia Munn and Eliot Page, among others. The director has also been photographed with Jeffrey Epstein, as revealed by documents and photos released by the DOJ. Ratner denied all allegations of harassment and assault.
Ratner’s involvement with the project was directly responsible for a significant number of the production staff requesting that their names be removed from the final product. The First Lady herself did not draw the ire of the crew. Reports suggest that chatter on set had more to do with Ratner’s conduct than it did with the contents of the documentary.
The director, Brett Ratner, has been accused of sexual harassment by at least 6 women, and he’s in the Epstein files. Fitting. https://t.co/wNZAjOd7lm
— Trill Clinton (@aStatesman) January 26, 2026
Mikey Weinstein, who is the founder and president of the MRFF, spoke with Business Insider about the whole situation. He said, as per the Irish Star, “People are scared. They were pressured to see the movie. Your military superior, that’s not your shift manager at Taco Bell or Starbucks. They have complete and total control over you.”
An unnamed service member also revealed that his commanding officer has no qualms about wearing a MAGA hat and has made it very clear that he is not above taking disciplinary action against those who oppose the Trump administration. The viewing of the film was counted among the three ‘unit activity events’. Military units must complete three of these each month. The unnamed personnel also said that they were ‘advised’ to attend the screening with their families. It was clear that there was no option otherwise.
The Department of Defence, which insists on calling itself the Department of War, released a statement in response to these allegations. They said, “[There] is no Department of War directive requiring service members to see this film, though the film is fantastic,”
