Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, have filed a US defamation lawsuit against rightwing podcaster Candace Owens, escalating their legal battle against the false claim that the French first lady was born a man. The lawsuit, filed this week, targets Owens for spreading what it calls “verifiably false and devastating lies” that Brigitte Macron, 72, is actually a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux. The Macrons’ legal team stated that the evidence clearly disproves this “grotesque narrative”, which has become a campaign of global humiliation and relentless bullying.
The false claim originated in France in 2021, during a period of heightened distrust in politicians following the gilets jaunes protests and the Covid-19 pandemic, which claimed over 130,000 lives in France. In December 2021, a self-described “independent investigative journalist” named Natacha Rey broadcast a four-hour YouTube interview alleging that Brigitte Macron was transgender. The video garnered 500,000 views within hours, and the hashtag #Jean-MichelTrogneux trended on social media, promoted by far-right and anti-vaccine accounts.
Emmanuelle Anizon, a journalist who investigated the rumour, noted that the conspiracy spread due to a deeper societal mistrust of institutions. “Many people had switched off traditional media and turned to online accounts – Covid and vaccine mistrust increased that,” she said. The Macrons’ relationship has long been a subject of online commentary, given Brigitte is 24 years older than her husband and was his former teacher.
The lawsuit clarifies that Jean-Michel Trogneux is Brigitte’s older brother, not a former identity. Trogneux, 80, lives in Amiens and appeared alongside his sister at Emmanuel Macron’s presidential inaugurations. Owens, whose podcast reaches millions, has defended her narrative. The Macrons previously filed a criminal complaint in France, but this US action marks the first time both spouses have jointly pursued legal measures against the conspiracy.
