Epstein emails reveal role in arranging White House tour for Woody Allen

NEW YORK (JN) – Emails released by the U.S. Justice Department shed new light on the long-documented friendship between filmmaker Woody Allen, his wife Soon-Yi Previn, and financier Jeffrey Epstein, including Epstein’s role in helping the couple secure a tour of the White House in 2015. The correspondence shows how Epstein leveraged personal connections to arrange access despite his status at the time as a registered sex offender.

The records, part of a broader disclosure of Epstein-related materials, offer a closer look at the social and personal exchanges between the three, illustrating how their relationship extended beyond casual acquaintance into frequent contact, shared social circles, and mutual support during periods of public controversy.

The emails also capture how Epstein and Allen privately discussed media scrutiny surrounding allegations that had followed both men for years, providing context to a relationship that has drawn sustained public attention since Epstein’s death in 2019.

The White House visit arranged through personal contacts

In a May 2015 email, Epstein wrote to Kathy Ruemmler, who had served as White House counsel during President Barack Obama’s administration, asking if she could show Previn the White House. “I assume Woody would be too politically sensitive?” Epstein wrote.

Ruemmler replied that she believed she could show both Allen and Previn the White House but questioned whether Epstein himself would be permitted entry given his criminal record. “You are too politically sensitive, I think,” she wrote to Epstein.

White House visitor logs show that Allen, Previn and Ruemmler toured the White House on Dec. 27, 2015, a Sunday when Obama was out of Washington and in Hawaii.

A long-standing social relationship in New York

The emails indicate that Allen, Previn and Epstein were neighbors in New York City and dined together regularly. Their gatherings included well-known public figures such as talk show host Dick Cavett, linguist Noam Chomsky and comedian David Brenner, according to the correspondence.

Epstein attended screenings of Allen’s films and, at times, visited Allen while he worked on editing projects. In a letter commissioned for Epstein’s 2016 birthday celebration, Allen described the dinners as featuring a “wide variety of interesting people” and detailed the elaborate meals and service at Epstein’s home.

A request for comment sent to an assistant for Allen and Previn was not immediately returned.

Emails reflecting private discussions of public scandals

Many of the exchanges among Allen, Previn and Epstein refer to controversies dating back to the early 1990s, when Allen’s relationship with Previn — the adopted daughter of his then-partner Mia Farrow — became public. Around the same time, Allen was investigated by Connecticut authorities over allegations that he had sexually assaulted Farrow’s adopted daughter, Dylan.

In 1993, a Connecticut prosecutor said there was “probable cause” to charge Allen but decided not to pursue the case. Allen has consistently denied the allegations. The claims returned to public attention in 2014 after Dylan Farrow published an open letter in The New York Times.

Allen married Previn in 1997. The couple later adopted two daughters. In recent years, Allen has faced significant professional and public backlash in the United States film industry.

The emails show Epstein, Allen and Previn discussing how they believed they had been unfairly treated by the media. In a 2016 exchange, they compared their situations to allegations then facing comedian Bill Cosby, who denied accusations that he had drugged and sexually assaulted multiple women.

“The crowd needs a witch to burn, and there are not many left,” Epstein wrote.

In responses relayed through Previn, Allen said his own situation was “radically different,” describing the allegations against him as stemming from a single accuser and a discredited investigation, referring to Farrow.

Epstein replied that public criticism of Allen was more closely tied to what he called the “publicly broken taboo” of Allen’s relationship with Previn.

Context of Epstein’s legal history

At the time of the 2015 visit, Epstein had already pleaded guilty in 2008 in Florida to soliciting prostitution from a minor and was a registered sex offender. His case and past accusations had been widely reported in U.S. media.

Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges involving minors.

The emails do not indicate any involvement by Allen in Epstein’s alleged abuse of girls and young women. However, they provide additional detail on the extent and tone of their association years after Epstein’s criminal conviction.