Bannon's Shadowy Ties and Unreleased Tapes In The Spotlight

Washington, D.C. — November 15, 2025  In a bombshell release that's rippling through the corridors of power and the fever swamps of social media alike, more than 20,000 pages of emails from the estate of the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein have been made public by the House Oversight Committee. Among the trove's most explosive revelations: a web of correspondence painting former Trump strategist Steve Bannon as a frequent confidant and collaborator with Epstein, spanning media coaching, political scheming, and even travel logistics. The documents, dropped Wednesday amid ongoing scrutiny of Epstein's elite network, have reignited long-simmering questions about 15 hours of unreleased video footage Bannon filmed with the disgraced mogul in 2019—footage he has teased for years but never fully shared. The emails, covering interactions from 2009 through the months before Epstein's 2019 jailhouse death, show Bannon's name appearing over 1,700 times, including dozens of direct exchanges. Far from the "globalist child molester" Bannon has publicly decried on his "War Room" podcast, Epstein emerges here as a behind-the-scenes advisor to the MAGA architect during a pivotal 2018 media blitz defending then-President Donald Trump. In one six-day iMessage thread from August 2018, Epstein—using an account tied to his personal email—dispenses real-time feedback on Bannon's TV appearances, from MSNBC interviews to Fox News slots. "How did it go?" Epstein texts as one broadcast wraps, adding he'd "took off early so I could land in time to watch." Bannon replies that the segment ran long, airing for a full hour across platforms. The partnership extended to Epstein's own image rehab. Texts reveal the pair workshopping responses to scandals dogging Epstein, including his controversial 2008 plea deal and whispers of undue prosecutorial leniency. Epstein gripes to Bannon about a "totally nuts" stalker—former associate Steven Hoffenberg—bombarding agencies with demands for a billion dollars, dismissing him as "one more pain." Bannon, in turn, offers sympathy, texting back about a "crazed jihad" against Epstein unlike anything he'd seen, even after his own White House ouster. By early 2019, their collaboration had evolved into something more cinematic: Bannon coaching Epstein on camera presence, urging him to project as "engaging... natural... friendly... not creepy" during mock interrogations. This footage—clocking in at 12 to 15 hours, per multiple reports—forms the core of a planned documentary Bannon has alternately described as an exposé on Epstein's "perversions and depravity" and a PR dry run for a prime-time redemption arc, potentially with CBS's 60 Minutes. Author Michael Wolff, who observed some sessions at Epstein's New York townhouse, detailed in his 2021 book Too Famous how Bannon played tough-guy interviewer, channeling Mike Wallace to prep Epstein for the big leagues. "Stick to your message," Bannon advised repeatedly: Epstein wasn't a pedophile. Yet the 60 Minutes sit-down never materialized—Epstein's federal sex-trafficking arrest in July 2019 saw to that—and the tapes remain locked away. Bannon has promised a full release "early next year," but as of this week, no timeline has materialized. The emails only amplify the intrigue. In one 2018 exchange, Epstein dangles European power-brokering perks to lure Bannon across the Atlantic: "There are many leaders of countries we can organize for you to have one on ones" if he commits eight to 10 days on the continent. Bannon bites, but warns of the "jihad" brewing against his would-be patron. Other messages touch on Brexit gossip—Epstein querying if Theresa May would survive as Bannon jets from a protest-plagued Oxford Union speech—and even Epstein chartering a Gulf Air flight reroute for the stranded strategist, earning a quip: "U r an amazing assistant." Critics from across the aisle are now piling on, demanding transparency. Mark Epstein, the financier's brother, publicly called for the tapes' release in July, recounting a post-death meeting where Bannon admitted the sessions were meant to "rehabilitate [Jeffrey's] reputation." "They spent a lot of time together," Mark Epstein told NBC News. On the right, Roger Stone—once outed by Bannon as a WikiLeaks conduit—blasted his former ally on X as a "perjurer, bullshit artist, and backstabber" who "took big bucks from Epstein to rehabilitate his image." Even conspiracy peddler Alex Jones, usually a Bannon booster, shrugged off the emails by noting, "It's Steve Bannon coming to do a TV interview with him. That's what he does." Bannon, who served four months in prison last year for contempt of Congress over January 6 subpoenas, has stayed mum on the deluge. His "War Room" episodes this week have fixated on everything from election fraud echoes to Biden-era "deep state" plots—anything but the Epstein specter now haunting his inbox. A representative for Bannon did not respond to requests for comment. The Oversight Committee's dump, spearheaded by Democrats, arrives as Epstein's shadow looms large over Trump's orbit. Schedules buried in the files show a 7 a.m. breakfast with Bannon in February 2019, just months before Epstein's demise. Other emails nod to Trump's "falling out" with Epstein in the mid-2000s, but one cryptic note to Ghislaine Maxwell—the financier's convicted accomplice—hints at deeper silence: "That dog that hasn’t barked is Trump... [A victim] spent hours at my house with him, he has never once been mentioned." Trump dismissed the broader release as a Democratic "hoax" on Truth Social, tying it to shutdown distractions. Legal experts say the tapes could be pivotal. "If Bannon holds material relevant to ongoing probes into Epstein's network, withholding it raises ethical red flags," said one former federal prosecutor, speaking anonymously. Epstein's estate executors—attorney Darren Indyke and accountant Richard Kahn—may even claim ownership, as reports suggest the financier footed production costs. For now, the footage remains a tantalizing black box, much like Epstein's infamous "client list" that never fully surfaced. As Washington braces for more leaks—Republicans have vowed their own tranche of documents—the Bannon-Epstein saga underscores a uncomfortable truth: In the MAGA ecosystem, alliances with the devil's dealmakers were once just another Tuesday. Whether those 15 hours of tape will ever see daylight, or bury more secrets, could redefine the battle lines all over again. Stay tuned—this story's far from over.