Michael Bay's '13 Hours' Makes Millions Thanks To 'Trump Effect'

’13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi’, Michael Bay’s movie about the 2012 terrorist attack at the US embassy in Libya, was a rare flop for the blockbuster director.

Costing $45 million (£34 million) to make, it only brought in $70 million (£53 million) at the box office, meaning that it will certainly have lost money for Paramount Pictures after promotion and marketing costs.

But now the movie is having an unprecedented surge in profits in the home entertainment market.

It’s made an unheard of $40 million (£30 million) alone since its digital release in May this year.

Bob Buchi, head of the studio’s home media distribution arm told The Hollywood Reporter: “The gross could end up being on par with the box office.

“The movie is showing broad appeal because it’s based on a true story of American heroes.”

However, it’s thought that this isn’t the only reason the movie has taken off.

The incident in Benghazi, which resulted in the death of the US ambassador J. Christopher Stevens among others, is frequently seized upon by Donald Trump and his cohorts as an example of the failure of Hillary Clinton in her then role as Secretary of State.

She’s often criticised for not handling the attack quickly enough and has herself taken responsibility for lapses in security which allowed the situation to escalate.

Mark Geist and John Tiegen, two security contractors who are depicted in the movie – played by Max Martin and Dominic Fumusa – even appeared at the Republican National Convention last month, berating Clinton on stage.

For his part, Bay said the movie was not politically motivated, and Clinton is never named in it.

Image credits: Paramount/AP