French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, have filed a defamation lawsuit in the United States against right-wing commentator Candace Owens over what they describe as “verifiably false and devastating lies” about the French first lady.
The 218-page complaint, lodged on Wednesday in Delaware Superior Court, seeks a jury trial and unspecified punitive damages.
The legal action follows Owens’s publication of an eight-part podcast and YouTube series titled Becoming Brigitte, in which she alleges that Brigitte Macron was born male and had transitioned, stolen another person’s identity, and is engaged in an incestuous relationship with her husband.
Lawyers for the Macrons said in a statement that the lawsuit was filed after repeated requests for Owens to retract the claims were ignored. The couple said the allegations had caused them serious harm and were rooted in deliberate falsehoods.
The legal filing also addresses the circumstances of the couple’s relationship, which began when Brigitte was a teacher and Emmanuel Macron a student. It emphasises that their relationship has always remained within legal bounds.
Owens, who has a large following on social media platforms X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube, responded on her podcast, dismissing the suit as “littered with factual inaccuracies” and a “desperate public relations strategy”. She said she had no prior knowledge that the lawsuit was imminent, though legal representatives for both parties have reportedly been in contact since January.
A spokesperson for Owens accused the Macrons of trying to “bully” her into silence, claiming Brigitte had refused multiple interview requests.
The lawsuit is one of the rare instances in which a sitting world leader and their spouse have pursued defamation claims in the US. It comes amid a broader trend of high-profile figures turning to the courts to challenge damaging media content.
Former US President Donald Trump is also currently suing The Wall Street Journal for $10 billion, alleging defamation over its reporting of a 2003 birthday video involving Jeffrey Epstein. Trump also recently settled another case with ABC, reportedly worth $15 million, over incorrect claims about a civil jury verdict related to sexual misconduct.
Under US law, defamation suits by public figures are notoriously difficult to win. Plaintiffs must prove “actual malice”—that the publisher either knowingly spread false information or acted with reckless disregard for the truth.
Legal experts say the Macrons face an uphill legal battle, but their action signals a growing willingness by public figures to confront what they see as damaging disinformation in the digital age.
