Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron filed a fresh defamation lawsuit in the United States last week against right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who has claimed that the French president’s wife is transgender.
The Macrons brought the case in federal court in Tennessee, where Owens lives. They allege that the conservative podcaster has “used this false statement to promote her independent platform, gain notoriety, and make money.”
Owens confirmed the filing on Monday in a post on X, writing that the “Macrons have indeed filed a NEW set of claims against me.”
The new lawsuit follows a ruling that narrowed the scope of an earlier complaint filed in Delaware in 2025. In that case, a judge dismissed the claims against Owens personally on jurisdictional grounds but allowed the proceedings against companies linked to her to continue.
In their latest filing, the Macrons accuse Owens of “unequivocally” intensifying her claims after the first lawsuit was brought.
“She has continued to use her podcast to expand her lies about the Macrons, sell merchandise making fun of the Macrons, and collect donations based on her ‘reporting’ on the Macrons,” the 411-page complaint states.
The Macrons described Owens’ material as “verifiably false and devastating lies,” while stressing that “there is nothing shameful or defamatory about being a man, being transgender, or being gay.” They said the statements were defamatory because they accused the couple of deceiving France and the world for decades about Brigitte Macron’s identity, as well as committing crimes to hide that alleged deception.
Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron have filed a new US defamation lawsuit against right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who claims the French president’s wife is transgender
Candace Owens, pictured, and her lawyers say the Macrons’ lawsuit is a “politically motivated” effort to restrict free speech
The Macrons sued Owens and two Delaware-registered companies associated with her in July last year over what they called a “campaign of global humiliation”
Brigitte Macron, 73, has also pursued legal action in France over claims that she was born male.
In September 2024, two women were convicted of spreading false claims after posting a YouTube video in December 2021 alleging that Brigitte Macron had once been a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux. Jean-Michel Trogneux is in fact her brother.
False claims about Brigitte Macron have repeatedly resurfaced on French social media since her husband was first elected in 2017.
The story gained greater traction overseas, particularly in the United States, after Owens promoted it in March 2024 through social media posts and a video series titled “Becoming Brigitte.”
“These claims are demonstrably false, and Owens knew they were false when she published them,” the court filing alleges.
“These lies have caused tremendous damage to the Macrons. Defendant has subjected the Macrons to a campaign of global humiliation.”
The latest case was filed after the First Lady’s initial defamation action against Owens suffered a setback, when a judge ruled that the commentator could not be held personally liable in that court.
The Macrons filed the original lawsuit against Owens and two Delaware-registered businesses connected to her in July last year, accusing her of conducting a “campaign of global humiliation.”
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However, Delaware Superior Court Judge Sheldon Rennie ruled in October that the court did not have jurisdiction over Owens, who resides in Tennessee.
The claims against Candace Owens LLC and Georgetom Inc. can proceed because both companies are registered in Delaware.
“Owens has dissected their appearance, their marriage, their friends, their family and their personal history—twisting it all into a grotesque narrative designed to inflame and degrade,” the complaint states.
“The result,” it adds, “is relentless bullying on a worldwide scale.”
Owens launched the “Becoming Brigitte” podcast series in 2025, making false allegations that Brigitte Macron had stolen another person’s identity, transitioned to female and that the Macrons were blood relatives engaged in incest.
The claims about Brigitte Macron’s gender can be traced to a 2021 “investigation” published by Faits et Documents, a small far-right magazine that has been accused of promoting anti-Semitism and conspiracy theories.
The article was co-written by self-described independent journalist Natacha Rey and Xavier Poussard, but initially attracted little attention.
Rey later discussed her unsubstantiated allegations in a four-hour YouTube interview with “spiritual medium” Delphine Jégousse, also known as Amandine Roy. The video went viral ahead of France’s 2022 presidential election.
Although Rey was found liable for defaming Brigitte Macron in September 2024, Owens continued to promote the allegations.
Earlier this year, 10 people who circulated what authorities described as “malicious” claims that the First Lady was born male were convicted of cyber-bullying.
A Paris court handed the defendants suspended prison sentences of up to eight months for comments about Brigitte Macron that it described as “particularly degrading and insulting.”
The eight men and two women, aged between 41 and 65, were accused of posting “numerous” false claims that she was born male and of linking the 24-year age difference between her and Emmanuel Macron to paedophilia.
Brigitte Macron did not attend the two-day trial, which took place in October last year.
After the sentences were handed down, she told France’s TF1 television that she had pursued legal action to “set an example” and challenge harassment after some of the posts had been viewed tens of thousands of times.
Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she called the “deterioration” of her mother’s life as the online harassment intensified.
“She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,” Auzière told the court.
Auzière said the harassment had affected the whole family, including Emmanuel Macron’s grandchildren.
