Steve Bannon Says He Courted Jeffrey Epstein With Chummy Texts For a Documentary

Donald Trump’s former strategist, caught up in the latest Epstein files fallout, says his film to expose the late pedophile will be released later this year. Jeffrey Epstein and Steve Bannon Getty images Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Steve Bannon says newly-released text messages exchanged with the late Jeffrey Epstein in 2019 aimed to cajole the disgraced financier and convicted pedophile into participating in a documentary he was at work on at the time. “I am a filmmaker and TV host with decades of experience interviewing controversial figures. That’s the only lens through which these private communications should be viewed, a documentary filmmaker working, over a period of time, to secure 50 hours of interviews from a reclusive subject,” Bannon, a podcaster and Donald Trump’s former strategist, said in a statement to the New York Times for a Feb. 16 profile. Related Stories News Epstein Survivor Accuses 'Grand Theft Auto V' Producer of Sexual Assault TV Trump Declares Bill Maher White House Dinner a "Waste," Says 'Real Time' Host Is "No Different Than Kimmel, Fallon or Colbert" Bannon added the long-gestating documentary about Epstein will be released later this year and will “destroy the very myths he created.” The rumpled former Trump advisor in the latest text revelations has been seen once again to have advised Epstein and apparently staged a behind-the-scenes media makeover during a series of videotaped sessions at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse in which Bannon served as his interviewer. But he was just trying to get Epstein to open up as a professional filmmaker, Bannon told the New York Times. His statement, which follows earlier revelations about video footage of the two men in an apparent documentary interview shoot, will add to a long-running debate about whether Bannon really had a documentary in the works or was looking to help rehabilitate Epstein’s reputation with media training. The chummy text exchanges between Bannon and Epstein were part of the latest U.S. Department of Justice release of documents surrounding investigations into the convicted sex offender, who died while in federal custody in 2019. The exchanges include Bannon giving Epstein advice on how he should handle continuing investigations into his past ahead of his eventual arrest and jailing. His NYT statement about researching a documentary comes as Bannon and a host of other power players face growing criticism over their inclusion in the Epstein files. Read More About: donald trump Jeffrey Epstein Steve Bannon THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Subscribe Sign Up More from The Hollywood Reporter Polly Findlay ‘Midwinter Break’ Review: Lesley Manville and Ciarán Hinds Star in a Marital Crisis Drama That’s Low-Key to a Fault