Melania Trump's 'Fakery' Exposed: First Lady's 'Struggling' Documentary Accidentally Reveals Replica of Famous Renoir Painting Hanging in Glamorous Office
Melania Trump is being called out for showing off a fake piece of art.
Jan. 20 2026, Published 6:12 p.m. ET
Art may be in the eye of the beholder, but RadarOnline.com has learned First Lady Melania Trump may be holding an obvious fake.
The Don's wife has been dragged for spotlighting a classic Renoir painting that experts have bashed as a cheap imitation.
Melania Peels Behind the Curtain
Melania is getting ready for the premiere of her new biopic following her personal campaign trail with husband Donald Trump.
Melania is gearing up for the release of her self-produced documentary, appropriately titled Melania. The film, directed by Brett Ratner, is expected to give audiences a rare behind-the-scenes look into Melania's role as first lady as well as her marriage with Donald.
It also gives a rare look into the first couple's private lives, including insight into their particular opulence. However, one art aficionado noted that one of Melania's prized pieces of art was not like the others – and was actually a fake.
The painting is an apparent copy of Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s 1874 La Loge, which she had hanging in her Trump Tower office. It features prominently in the trailer for the movie, including in a scene documenting a conversation between Melania and her 79-year-old husband.
But one user on X was distracted by the artwork, and later tweeted: "Okay something came up for me here. Why do the Trumps have a fake of Renoir's 'La Loge' on their wall?"
Accusations of Fakery
The 'fake' painting can be seen on the left.
Art experts say there is no doubt it’s a copy because the original, which is highly coveted, has been in the permanent collection of London’s Courtauld Gallery since 1948.
Critics of the presidential power couple were quick to see similarities between the painting and how they view Trump's lifestyle.
After the OG poster asked why the fraud was hanging, one person snarked back: "(Because) there's nothing real about them," while another piled on: "It suits their fakeness pretty well, I'd say."
One person reasoned: "Least weird thing about their 5th Avenue penthouse, to be fair."
While one person slammed: "These demons' obsession with gaudiness is very fascinating. Uncultured, unsophisticated, barely sentient, bottom of the barrel trash."
Let's Not Go to the Movies
Melania is struggling to sell tickets to the movie.
If Melania is worried the faux painting will be exposed on the big screen, she can take comfort in the fact that not many people will apparently be in theater seats to see it. As Radar has reported, the $40million project has been "struggling" to sell advanced tickets.
Considering Melania's fiercely private nature, the idea of supporters lining up to buy tickets for a peak inside the first lady's lifestyle wasn't necessarily far-fetched, but sources claimed expectations have dramatically fallen.
"In New York, only a handful of seats have been booked," a source told Hollywood insider Rob Shuter, who writes on Substack. "Palm Beach is no better. Even in Trump country, theaters are practically empty."
"The studio was expecting a big turnout, but so far it's not materializing," the source said of Melania's movie, which is being distributed by Amazon/MGM.
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Box Office Bomb?
The film was pushed by her husband.
According to sources, advanced ticket sales are so dismal that the studio has even considered withholding box office figures.
"They may even hold back official box office numbers if the opening is weaker than expected," the source explained.
Even supporters of Melania confessed the outlook for the film's release is grim.
"It's a high-profile project, but hype doesn't always translate into ticket sales," an insider noted. "People are curious, but they're not rushing to buy tickets yet."
