During the viral exchange between Emmanuel Macron and his wife, which the French president has addressed, Brigitte Macron reportedly said something to him that has been revealed by a lip reader.
After landing in Vietnam at the start of their Southeast Asia tour on May 25, 2025, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, were spotted in an unexpected interaction as they prepared to disembark from their plane. In addition to Brigitte pushing her husband away, the duo reportedly exchanged some words.
Video footage shared by major outlets like ABC News captured the moment that sent the public into a frenzy. As the aircraft door was pulled open by a uniformed official, Emmanuel appeared mid-conversation, as he stood just inside the cabin.
Without warning, two red-sleeved arms — identified as Brigitte’s — reached out and pressed against Emmanuel’s face in a firm, two-handed motion.
One hand covered his mouth and nose, while the other braced his jaw, which caused the French leader to recoil as he turned his head away. His expression quickly shifted to surprise, followed by a tight smile and quick wave as he noticed the cameras on him.
What might have been a fleeting marital moment inside the privacy of a plane instead unfolded in full view of onlookers, sparking a wave of online speculation and media commentary.
Major French outlets scrambled to interpret the moment, with Le Parisien publishing a headline that read, “Slap or ‘squabble’? The images of Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron disembarking in Vietnam trigger a lot of comment [sic].”
As ABC News’ clip replayed the moment in slow motion, commentators dissected each frame: The bewildered glance, the quick pivot toward Brigitte’s direction, and the awkward seconds that followed.
Emmanuel exited the aircraft alone, shook hands with an aircrew member, and greeted the gathered crowd with a diplomatic wave, while Brigitte emerged from behind him moments later.
He turned and extended an arm toward her — an offer she visibly declined. The pair then descended the stairs together. They walked side by side without any physical contact. Their expressions were composed but noticeably restrained.
While the physical gesture captured global attention, it was the words exchanged between the French president and his wife that added a sharper edge to the unfolding spectacle. A professional lip reader, brought in by local media, claimed to have decoded the brief but tense conversation that accompanied the push.
According to the expert, the chill in the air continued after the couple exited the aircraft, as they reached the top of the staircase.
When Emmanuel extended his arm and Brigitte bypassed the gesture, she reportedly muttered, “Dégage, espèce de loser,” which translates to, “Stay away, you loser.”
Undeterred, Emmanuel seemed to respond with a plea, “Essayons, s’il te plaît,” or “Let’s try, please?” But the appeal was swiftly dismissed. “Non.”/”No,” Brigitte replied curtly. The lip reader noted that Emmanuel’s closing expression, paired with his final utterance — “Je vois,” meaning “I see” — spoke volumes.
Whether it was resignation, recognition, or simple acceptance, the brief exchange suggested a moment of raw candor between the pair, now etched into public memory thanks to the ever-watchful eye of the media.
Facing mounting media attention and public speculation, the French President addressed the now-infamous exchange while speaking to the press in Hanoi on Monday, May 26.
Brushing off the moment as far less dramatic than it appeared, Emmanuel told reporters that what had been captured was, in his words, nothing more than “teasing — rather joking with my wife.”
He expressed bewilderment at the global fixation, adding that the incident had been blown vastly out of proportion. Emmanuel said it had turned “into a kind of geo-planetary catastrophe where some people are even coming up with theories.”
The president emphasized the private and playful nature of the moment, attempting to reframe the narrative as a misunderstood interaction between long-time partners.
Doubling down on his attempt to diffuse the situation, Emmanuel reiterated his stance in a televised segment with France’s BFMTV. “We are bickering and joking with my wife,” he stated, voicing clear frustration over the extent of the media storm.
“In the world we live in, we don’t have a lot of time to lose” on such topics, the president added, implying that the scrutiny was both misplaced and unproductive.
Pushing back against any insinuation of domestic tension, Emmanuel Macron firmly denied that the exchange represented any kind of “domestic scene,” calling the whole frenzy “a bit of nonsense.”
Still, despite his efforts to reclaim the narrative, the moment remains etched into the public imagination — a fleeting, silent exchange now magnified into international conversation.
Whether a misunderstood joke or something more candidly revealing, the interaction between France’s first couple has proven that even the briefest glimpse behind closed doors — or plane doors — can set off a worldwide ripple.