Chelsea Handler Opens Up About 2010 Dinner at Jeffrey Epstein's Manhattan Home

A recent Netflix roast brought renewed attention to Chelsea Handler's past visit to Jeffrey Epstein's Manhattan mansion. During the Roast of Kevin Hart, comedian Shane Gillis referenced the 2010 dinner, prompting Handler to clarify details she'd shared publicly in a 2023 Rolling Stone interview.

The guest list that evening included Katie Couric, Woody Allen and his wife Soon-Yi Previn, journalist Charlie Rose, publicist Peggy Siegal, and Prince Andrew, along with Epstein himself. Handler described it as an intimate gathering of roughly eight people.

"I went there — I don't remember what year it was, but it was before I knew any of the bad stuff about Jeffrey Epstein, though apparently he had been caught earlier — with Katie Couric, and there was some publicist, this Peggy Siegal woman, who was friends with Katie," Handler recalled. She noted her shock upon arriving at the sprawling residence, saying she questioned whether they'd been taken to a Rockefeller estate.

Handler emphasized that she initially didn't recognize Epstein, but was taken aback when she spotted Prince Andrew at the event. Her discomfort intensified when Woody Allen and Soon-Yi arrived near the evening's end.

"I was getting so mad on behalf of all women," Handler explained of her reaction to Allen's presence. "I was like, 'I can't be here, as a woman, and not say something to [Allen].'" Rather than making a direct confrontation, Handler waited for an opportune moment before leaning over to Allen and Soon-Yi with a carefully crafted question.

"After a while, he's eating his cobbler, and as he's chewing on it, I lean into him and Soon-Yi and say, 'So… how did you two meet?'" Handler recounted. The quip prompted Allen to spit out his dessert while laughing, though Soon-Yi didn't grasp the implication behind the comment.

Katie Couric quickly recognized the tension and ushered Handler away from the situation. "And then Katie Couric was like, 'OK Chelsea, time to go!' And that was my only experience at Jeffrey Epstein's house," Handler concluded, adding that she had never traveled on Epstein's plane or aircraft.

Handler noted that this dinner took place before she was aware of the criminal allegations that would later emerge against Epstein. Soon-Yi, the adopted daughter of actress Mia Farrow and musician Andre Previn, began a relationship with Woody Allen after his separation from Farrow, when Soon-Yi was 21 years old.