French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, filed a defamation lawsuit against U.S. podcaster Candace Owens on Nov. 4, bringing their dispute to federal court in Tennessee after an earlier Delaware case.
Anadolu Agency reported that the Tennessee complaint accuses Owens of repeating claims about Brigitte Macron’s gender identity, including that she was born male and assumed the identity of her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux. The agency also reported that the complaint alleges Owens used the claims to draw attention and generate revenue for her media platform, and continued making them after the Macrons’ earlier legal action.
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee docket lists Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron as plaintiffs and Owens as the defendant. It records Nov. 4 as the filing date.
The new case follows a 2025 lawsuit the couple brought in Delaware against Owens and two companies associated with her. On Oct. 27, the Delaware Superior Court dismissed Owens as an individual defendant for lack of personal jurisdiction, a ruling that did not resolve the claims against her on their merits.
The Delaware court denied the companies’ motion to dismiss on forum non conveniens grounds. The case against them remains in Delaware while the court awaits supplemental briefing on which French limitations period applies. The order set no deadline for that briefing.
The Tennessee docket listing shows that a summons was issued Nov. 5. It shows no later scheduled decision.
