Melinda French Gates says newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails naming her ex-husband Bill Gates have reopened painful memories from the final years of their marriage. And, she believes the questions raised are his to answer.
The comments came after the U.S. Department of Justice released millions of pages of Epstein-related communications, including draft emails Epstein wrote to himself that made graphic and unverified claims about Gates’ personal life. Gates has denied the allegations, calling them false and defamatory.
Speaking on NPR’s Wild Card podcast, Melinda did not weigh in on the truth of Epstein’s claims. Instead, she spoke about the personal toll of seeing her former marriage pulled back into public view.
During a Tuesday episode of NPR’s Wild Card podcast, Melinda somberly spoke about the girls who were allegedly abused at the hands of the late financier. ‘I think we’re having a reckoning as a society, right? No girl, no girl should ever be put in the situation that they were… pic.twitter.com/hj6lhqLxGw
— Karli Bonne’ 🇺🇸 (@KarluskaP) February 3, 2026
“For me, it’s personally hard whenever those details come up,” she said. “Because it brings back memories of some very, very painful times in my marriage.”
The emails in question date back more than a decade and include Epstein alleging that Gates sought his help after contracting a sexually transmitted infection during an affair. Epstein also claimed Gates asked him to obtain antibiotics that could be given to Melinda without her knowledge. No evidence has been presented to support those claims.
A spokesperson for Gates said the emails were “absolutely absurd and completely false,” adding that they reflect Epstein’s frustration at failing to maintain a relationship with the Microsoft co-founder. Still, the renewed attention has placed Melinda back in a story she has long tried to move past.
“Whatever questions remain there of what I don’t — can’t even begin to know all of it — those questions are for those people and for even my ex-husband,” she said. “They need to answer to those things, not me.”
Melinda framed her response within a broader reckoning over Epstein’s crimes and the powerful men who moved in his orbit for years without consequence. She spoke at length about the harm done to young girls and women, and how the revelations continue to land long after Epstein’s death.
Bill Gates to Melinda: “Look at the time. It’s time to drink your antibiotic power smoothie.” pic.twitter.com/MolYDYnpgU
— Hoodlum 🇺🇸 (@NotHoodlum) February 1, 2026
“No girl should ever be put in the situation that they were put in,” she said. “It’s beyond heartbreaking.”
Melinda and Bill Gates announced their divorce in 2021 after 27 years of marriage. In her 2024 memoir, The Next Day, she described a relationship ridden with scandals and under strain by 2019 and 2020, marked by anxiety, sleeplessness, and what she later understood as a need to leave.
She has previously alluded to infidelity and to Gates’ associations with Epstein as part of the unraveling, without detailing specifics.
“I had to leave my marriage,” she said. “I wanted to leave my marriage.”
Gates has acknowledged meeting Epstein multiple times after Epstein’s 2008 conviction, calling those meetings a mistake. He has said he believed the interactions were related to philanthropy and has denied any criminal wrongdoing. He has not been charged in connection with Epstein’s crimes.
Asked about her emotional response to the latest document release, Melinda said it was marked less by anger than by sadness, both for herself and for Epstein’s victims.
Melinda Gates is one of the few people in our current saga of degenerate far-right pedophile billionaires who has ethics and integrity.
From a Google summary. It’s accurate pic.twitter.com/TPOBglnLdC
— Bob Morris🌵☀️ (@polizeros) February 2, 2026
“I’m able to take my own sadness and look at those young girls and say, ‘My God, how did that happen to those girls?’” she said. She added that she has moved on with her life and hopes accountability and justice remain the focus. “I am so happy to be away from all the muck that was there,” she said.
The full Wild Card episode airs later this week, where Melinda is also asked whether forgiveness is possible — a question that lingers quietly beneath the latest wave of headlines.
