Steve Mnuchin's Wife Loise Linton's New Film Raises Eyebrows Amid Reddit Stock Surge

The trailer for Me, You, Madness would probably have gone by unnoticed were it not for the person [...]

By Daniel S. Levine

The trailer for Me, You, Madness would probably have gone by unnoticed were it not for the person who wrote, directed, co-produced, and starred in the movie. Louise Linton, the controversial third wife of President Donald Trump's Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, is the mastermind behind the film, which STX is planning to release on Feb. 12. The distributor released the trailer on Friday and it was quickly skewered on social media as being a tone-deaf attempt at comedy.

In the film, Linton plays Catherine, a woman who loves money. She is even a hedge fund manager, so she probably would have seen her fortune take a hit during the Reddit-inspired stock surges last week. Catherine lives a glamorous, self-absorbed life, and the narration in the trailer could be read as a direct response to the criticisms Linton faced repeatedly during her husband's time leading the Treasury. Catherine decides to let Tyler (Gossip Girl's Ed Westwick) stay at her home, only to find out he is a thief. The two also fall in love, just to throw a wrench in the story.

Earlier this month, The New York Times revealed that the film includes a "drug-fueled poolside orgy" and one scene where Catherine "caresses frozen, severed male body parts while dancing to 'Let's Hear It for the Boy' in stiletto-heeled boots.'" The film's teaser trailer was supposed to be released earlier this month, but it was delayed due to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, led by Trump supporters. Linton told The Times she did not see the film as a response to her critics "at all." She wrote the film in 2018 and said her husband loves it.

"He loves it!" Linton said of Mnuchin. "He thinks it's hilarious. It's a fun, harmless movie — a campy, playful homage to Femme Fatales. And to the '80s, with its fast cars and hot babes and fun fashion and 'Tron' lighting." Mnuchin co-financed films himself and has an estimated net worth of $400 million. Linton refused to say how her film was paid for. She said it was financed by "friends and family."

STX Films is only distributing the film. Chairman Adam Fogelson told the Times the movie is a "gloriously committed" anti-romantic comedy. The company is "not financially on the hook for anything" and the only reason STX got involved was because of Mnuchin's friendship with Eros STX Global CEO Robert Simonds.

During the Trump administration, Linton was at the center of non-stop criticism. Her most infamous moment came in August 2017, when she posted a photo on Instagram showing her on a trip with Mnuchin and then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Linton included hashtags for all the expensive brands she wore in the photo, including Tom Ford and Valentino. She tried to change the public's view of her by supporting animal welfare during the rest of Mnuchin's time in government. But in her Times interview, Linton said she "felt censored."

"I didn't know what I was allowed to be," she said. "You can't wear this. You can't do that. You start to feel a little nervous to do anything. I spent plenty of days in a curled-up little ball, just crying and not understanding."

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