The Guardian's analysis of over a million Jeffrey Epstein emails has exposed the child sex offender's deep connections with high-profile figures in business and the arts, including former US treasury secretary Larry Summers, film director Woody Allen, and former Barclays head Jes Staley.
More than 3,000 direct emails from 2010 to 2019 show Summers confiding in Epstein about personal matters, including his relationship with an unnamed woman. Epstein also corresponded with Summers' wife, Elisa New, connecting her with potential donors such as private equity investor Leon Black. Epstein donated $110,000 to New's Poetry in America project, with discussions on how to avoid reputational fallout with Harvard University.
Summers stepped down from teaching at Harvard due to the revelations. In November 2023, he said he was 'deeply ashamed' and took 'full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr Epstein'. A spokesperson for New said she regretted accepting the donation.
Epstein organised dinners and meetings for Summers with figures including former Israeli PM Ehud Barak, Bill Gates, and Peter Thiel. He also arranged a film screening with Woody Allen, which Summers and New attended. Over 3,500 emails between Epstein and Allen's office suggest an extensive friendship involving meals, private screenings, gifts, and trips together.
In May 2016, Allen's wife Soon-Yi Previn quoted Allen referring to the 'Salem atmosphere' surrounding Bill Cosby's sexual abuse scandal. The emails also show Previn discussing dinner plans with Epstein's assistant a month before his arrest in July 2019.
Appearing in the Epstein files does not constitute evidence of wrongdoing. The Guardian analysed more than a million files, identifying over 150,000 unique emails for this investigation.
