‘Birds of a Feather’: Mike Tyson Under Fire After Accepting Melania’s Private Invite as Fans Connect His Trump History Over Robin Givens to Familiar Controversies A private showing of the upcoming documentary about first lady Melania Trump brought out celebrities, high-profile corporate exe cutives, and Donald Trump’s lucrative friend group. “Melania” screened in the White House’s East Room on Jan. 24. Trump, 55, was the center of attention at the black-tie affair that featured appearances by Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, Apple CEO Tim Cook, New York Stock Exchange CEO Lynn Martin, and other business titans. Not one official from Trump’s administration was present, but a surprising face in photos from that night has everyone flipping out. Professional boxer Mike Tyson is catching heat for being one of the VIPs at First Lady Melania Trump’s screening of her upcoming documentary in the White House. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) ‘Mike Make Everybody Nervous’: Mike Tyson ‘Kicked’ Don King in the Head During Explosive Fight After Promoter Took ‘Advantage of Him’  Boxing legend Mike Tyson, 59, was also on the guest list and actually showed up in Washington, DC, to view the Brett Ratner-directed film that covered Melania’s behind-the-scenes moments leading up to Donald Trump’s second presidential inauguration in January 2025. Once Tyson’s attendance at the “Melania” screening was outted in photos posted online, social media users dragged the former undisputed heavyweight champion for aligning with the polarizing Trump administration. “F–k Mike Tyson,” a Thread user declared in reaction to the Brooklyn native joining Fiat heiress Azzi Agnelli and controversial motivational speaker Tony Robbins as VIPs for the evening. One person slammed Tyson by implying the fighter, once referred to as the “Baddest Man on the Planet,” has seen his star power dim over the decades by calling him “Another has-been.” MELANIA, the film, exclusively in theaters worldwide on January 30th, 2026. pic.twitter.com/n2kloQ4JwW— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) December 17, 2025 “Paid. Mike Tyson got PAID!!” another poster speculated, despite not offering any evidence that the team behind “Melania” provided Tyson any financial compensation for showing up to the White House over the weekend. An infamous sports incident involving Tyson biting his boxing rival Evander Holyfield’s ear during their WBA heavyweight championship rematch in June 1997 was brought up as well. A jokester wrote on Threads, “You just KNOW Iron Mike was looking for an ear to chew off after 25 [minutes] of that movie.” It seems everyone of Melania’s guests caught heat when someone declared, “All Complete and UTTER LOSERS!!!” Additionally, Ratner, 56, drew criticism for working on “Melania” after USA Today reported his appearance in the Epstein files, released in December 2025. Once, a few threads, users pointed it out, one response that followed read, “Birds of a feather.” Another read, “Thanks for reminding us ….” Trump, 79, has been accused of misconduct by more than two dozen women and denied all allegations against him. Meanwhile, Tyson has a documented history of violence outside the ring and served three years in prison after he was found guilty of violating a woman in 1992. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Melania Trump (@melaniatrump) Even with the firestorm of controversy surrounding her documentary, Melania celebrated the film, honoring the individuals who came out to see the project with a statement shared on X and Instagram. “I am deeply humbled to have been surrounded by an inspiring room of friends, family, and cultural iconoclasts at the White House last night. Each of these individuals each brought their unique vision to the world, making a lasting impression,” the ex-model posted on Jan. 25. That message from Melania even caused a member of President Trump’s re-election campaign’s legal team to publicly call her out in the wake of the fatal shooting of 37-year-old nurse, Alex Pretti, at the hands of a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 24. I have deep respect for the First Lady and have been honored to meet her.But this event should have been postponed.With Minneapolis unraveling and Americans demanding leadership, this feels disconnected from reality.Disturbing echoes of 2020. https://t.co/vtSiR0shUC— Jenna Ellis (@realJennaEllis) January 26, 2026 But Tyson’s attendance is shocking to some due to his confrontation with Trump in the 1990s after hearing rumors that Trump was involved with Tyson’s then-wife, Robin Givens, according to the 2005 biography, “TrumpNation.” The boxer reportedly asked bluntly whether he was sleeping with Givens. Trump denied the rumors, called them “disgusting,” and downplayed the encounter. The book quotes Trump as later joking that if he had frozen during the confrontation, Tyson could have knocked him out. Tyson has previously claimed his relationship with Trump was mainly professional, from promoting his fights. But none of this will be in the documentary. He was also seen getting lifted off his feet by YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul at Trump’s inaugural ball in January and spotted chatting with the president and first lady in Bedminster, NJ., at the Trump National Golf Club months later. Moviegoers will have the chance to see “Melania” when the documentary debuts in American theaters on Jan. 30. With opening weekend projections between $2 million and $5 million, Melania faces a long road to recovering the estimated $75 million Amazon spent on production and marketing, including a reported $40 million paid by Amazon MGM Studios for distribution. However, despite Trump’s praise of her film being the hottest ticket in the United States, ticket sales for Melania are off to a slow start in the UK. Vue CEO Tim Richards told The Guardian that sales have been “soft,” noting that just one ticket had been sold for Friday’s 3:10 p.m. premiere screening at the chain’s flagship Islington theater in London, with only two booked for the 6 p.m. showing. The sluggish turnout has only added to broader questions surrounding the project. The film has also drawn scrutiny over speculation that Amazon’s multi-million-dollar deal with the Trump family carried political expectations, heightened by founder Jeff Bezos’ visible presence at Trump’s inauguration. The Amazin was one of the many tech industry billionaires who attended his inauguration ceremonies last year, alongside META CEO Mark Zuckerberg, sparking concerns about extremely wealthy donors’ influence on public policy. ‘Birds of a Feather’: Mike Tyson Under Fire After Accepting Melania’s Private Invite as Fans Connect His Trump History Over Robin Givens to Familiar Controversies ...read more read less