Melania Trump's Movie Director Awkwardly Grilled Over Photo With Jeffrey Epstein by Piers Morgan on Talk Show
Piers Morgan grilled Brett Ranter about how he ended up on a sofa with Jeffrey Epstein and two women.
Feb. 3 2026, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
Embattled director Brett Ratner was put on the hot seat after shocking photos linking him to convicted s-- offender Jeffrey Epstein and two mystery women resurfaced in the Justice Department’s latest document release – prompting pointed questions during his tense sit-down on Piers Morgan Uncensored, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Ratner, 56, was cheerfully hyping his first directing gig in more than a decade, Melania Trump's glossy new documentary, when the mood abruptly shifted and Morgan, 60, began pressing him about newly surfaced photos showing him socializing with the late predator. The optics were brutal, as the images dropped on January 30, the very same day Melania debuted worldwide.
Brett Ratner's Strong Denial
Brett Ratner claimed he only met Epstein 'once' at 'some event.'
"As you know, the picture came out of you with Jeffrey Epstein with two apparently young women in it. What is your response to that picture? And what is your response to the wider scandal of the Epstein files?" Morgan asked Ratner on Monday, February 2.
The Rush Hour director responded, "Oh, well, that particular picture – that picture in particular – happened around 20 years ago. Nineteen, 20, 21 years ago, because that is a photograph of my fiancée who invited me to this event, and that’s where the picture was taken."
Ratner claimed it was the one and only time he ever encountered the convicted s-- pest.
"I had never been in contact with Jeffrey Epstein before that photo, and I was never in contact with him after. So that’s a picture of my – me and my fiancée at some event," he explained.
'She Doesn't Want Me Sharing Her Name'
Ratner refused to identify the woman he claimed was his fiancée in the photo with Epstein.
The photo shows Ratner cuddled up on a sofa with a blonde woman whose face is blacked out. She has her hand on Epstein's left shoulder, as another blonde woman with her face obscured sits on his other side with her head on the financier's other shoulder.
When Morgan asked Ratner about the identity of his then-fiancée, the filmmaker refused to name her.
"She doesn't want me sharing her name in the case, but that's my fiancée 100 percent," Ranter explained, noting that they are no longer together.
"20 years ago, I was engaged to her when that photo was taken," he shared
Morgan didn't seem convinced, responding, "Right... And your position is that you never met Epstein before or after that picture that night?"
"No. Never. Never. Never," Ratner protested.
'It Wasn't Really My World'
Morgan then grilled Ratner on his opinion about the Epstein file scandal, "as more and more stuff cascades out. More and more people, very high-profile people, are dragged in."
"I mean, it's horrible," Ratner responded. "You see, I've been somehow sucked in, you know, through an image. So, there's so many stories about so many different people. It's hard to really follow and track what's truth and what's not truth."
He added, "You could see where one photograph kind of puts me, you know, there with him, and then all the stories start to spin out. So, I don't really know because I didn't know him. It wasn't really my world. It's not really my world. "
By then, Morgan knew he wasn't going to get much more out of Ratner, telling him, "You know what? I put the question to you about the picture. You've given a pretty emphatic answer. We'll leave it there."
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Ratner is seen attending the world premiere of 'Melania' in Washington, D.C.
While naysayers predicted Melania would be a major box-office bomb, it took in $7million in the U.S. during its opening weekend.
Ratner hadn't directed a film since 2014's Hercules. He was drummed out of Hollywood in 2017 during the Me Too movement after being accused by six women, including actresses Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge, of sexual misconduct and harassment.
