A body language expert has revealed that Emmanuel Macron showed his true emotions after wife Brigitte shoved him in the face during a ‘shocking’ moment captured by the world’s media.
Shortly after arriving in Vietnam on Sunday night, the French President was seen clenching one hand into a fist as he stepped off his plane, according to Judi James.
Addressing reporters in Hanoi today, Macron downplayed the incident, saying, “I was bickering, or rather joking, with my wife. It’s nothing.”
However, Judi James told MailOnline that the incident was far from a ‘playful’ exchange between husband and wife, as Macron and his team had tried to suggest.
“I would not describe the gesture we saw inside the plane as one of ‘play,’ as has been claimed,” she said.
“Pushing your partner in the face so forcefully that their head jerks to the side and they have to steady themselves, especially with what appears to be an additional ‘shove’ at the end, should not be dismissed as ‘fun’ just to preserve political image.”
Earlier on Monday, an official from the Élysée Palace described the video as “a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the trip began… a moment of closeness.”
Brigitte Macron, then a 39-year-old married mother of three, first met Emmanuel Macron in 1993 when she was his high school teacher and drama club supervisor. He was just 15 at the time.
Though he moved to Paris for his final year of school, he promised to marry her. Brigitte later joined him in Paris, divorced her husband, and the couple eventually wed in 2007.
The French President clenched one hand into a fist as he stepped onto the tarmac in Vietnam beside his wife.
Brigitte’s arms emerge from the left side of the open doorway as she places both hands on her husband’s face and gives it a shove.
Speaking to reporters in Hanoi today, President Macron said, “I was bickering, or rather joking, with my wife. It’s nothing.”
The clip showing the couple’s tense moment on the jet was initially dismissed as inauthentic by Macron’s office, but was soon confirmed genuine.
A close associate later downplayed it as a harmless ‘squabble’ between the couple.
In the footage captured by international press, Brigitte’s arms emerge from the left side of the open doorway as she places both hands on her husband’s face and gives it a shove.
President Macron appears startled but quickly recovers, turning to wave through the door. Meanwhile, Brigitte remains hidden behind the aircraft, leaving her expression and body language unseen.
The couple then descends the stairs for the official Vietnamese welcome, though Brigitte does not take Macron’s offered arm.
As they move away from the runway, Macron is seen clenching his fist tightly.
Body language expert Judi James reviewed the footage, calling the moment ‘genuinely shocking’ rather than playful, regardless of who was involved.
She noted the absence of shared laughter or teasing, and pointed out Macron’s tentative wave and checking gesture to his face.
“If the roles were reversed—his hand pushing her face—would it be called ‘playful’? It shouldn’t be different when it’s her to him,” James said.
Though the footage isn’t entirely clear, it appears Brigitte used both hands to push Macron’s face, which “could have easily caused him to lose balance and stumble.”
As the couple then headed down the plane steps together, she said, “he seems to hold his hand out towards her… but they walk with no further touch.”
Footage captured by the Associated Press in Hanoi on Sunday evening shows Macron stepping out as the plane door opens.
The president appears startled but quickly regains composure and turns to wave through the open doorway.
The couple then descend the staircase for the official welcome by Vietnamese officials, though Brigitte Macron does not accept her husband’s offered arm.
Describing the couple’s interaction on the first day of their Southeast Asia tour, Judi James said, “There has clearly been a reset for the actual visit.
“We can see the couple returning to their more pleasant touch rituals, with Macron offering his hand to help Brigitte down some stairs as they walk alongside their hosts, visible to the world’s eyes.”
James also noted that with an upcoming visit to the UK planned, the Macrons will need to be mindful of the “body language scrutiny that visit will now prompt.”
The French President and First Lady are scheduled for a state visit to the UK in July, where they will be hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla.
However, their current trip to Vietnam and tour of Southeast Asia risks being overshadowed by the now-viral footage from Sunday night’s incident.
In an attempt to control the narrative after the clip surfaced, anxious members of Macron’s inner circle quickly offered explanations.
One source said, “It was a moment when the president and his wife were decompressing one last time before the start of the trip by joking around.”
France’s President Emmanuel Macron posed with his wife Brigitte during a state dinner with Vietnam’s President Luong Cuong at the International Convention Center in Hanoi on May 26.
“It was a moment of togetherness. Nothing more should be made of it to fuel conspiracy theories,” a source said, blaming pro-Russian accounts for the negative comments surrounding the incident.
The video clip quickly circulated online, especially promoted by accounts known for their hostility toward the French leader.
Macron warned this was not the first time recently that videos of him had been distorted by what he called “crackpots.”
Earlier this month, France vehemently denied a false claim that President Macron had concealed a bag of cocaine while posing for a photo with Keir Starmer and Germany’s Friedrich Merz.
The trio met on Friday aboard a train traveling from Poland to Ukraine to visit President Volodymyr Zelensky and urge Russia to agree to a ceasefire.
Vietnam marks the first stop on Macron’s nearly week-long Southeast Asia tour, where he aims to position France as a reliable alternative to the United States and China.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron (L) and his wife Brigitte Macron attend a ceremony at the Temple of Literature in Hanoi on May 26
Pro-Russian social media users were quick to stoke unfounded conspiracy theories, claiming a white object seen on the table was a narcotic. However, the French government swiftly debunked the rumor, clarifying that the item was merely a tissue.
President Emmanuel Macron’s trip to Vietnam — the first by a French head of state in nearly a decade — underscores his ambition to bolster France’s presence in its former colony.
Vietnam, whose economy is heavily reliant on exports, has recently made trade concessions to the United States in an effort to stave off looming 46% tariffs. However, the European Union has expressed concerns that Hanoi’s pivot toward American goods may come at the expense of European exporters.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump escalated trade tensions on Friday by threatening to impose 50% tariffs on EU imports, though he tempered his rhetoric two days later by reinstating a July 9 deadline for trade talks with Brussels.
Vietnam marks the first leg of Macron’s nearly week-long tour of Southeast Asia, where he will present France as a stable and strategic alternative to both the U.S. and China. He is also scheduled to visit Indonesia and Singapore.
The allegations about the white object were amplified by far-right propagandists and Russian online operatives, further fueling disinformation surrounding Macron’s visit.
On the first day of his tour, President Macron delivered a strong message in support of a global order grounded in international law. Speaking alongside Vietnamese President Luong Cuong in Hanoi, he emphasized the need for a rules-based system “at a time of both great imbalance and a return to power-driven rhetoric.”
The visit also saw the signing of more than a dozen bilateral agreements spanning defense, nuclear energy, and trade. Among them was a major deal between budget airline VietJet and Airbus for the purchase of 20 A330-900 aircraft.
Macron paid tribute at a Hanoi war memorial honoring those who resisted French colonial rule, and held meetings with both President Cuong and Communist Party General Secretary To Lam.
He also visited the historic Temple of Literature, an 11th-century landmark in the heart of Hanoi, underscoring the cultural diplomacy element of his Southeast Asia tour.
The French President and First Lady were seen attending the ‘No to Bullying’ award ceremony at the Élysée Palace last week.
Brigitte and Emmanuel Macron attended the French Cup Final between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Stade de Reims at the Stade de France on May 24.
President Macron described France and Vietnam’s “sovereignty partnership” as a potential cornerstone of France’s broader Indo-Pacific strategy.
He highlighted France’s commitment to upholding international maritime law, citing the deployment of a French carrier strike group to the South China Sea in early 2025 as a clear demonstration of that stance.
While China and Vietnam maintain a maritime agreement in the Gulf of Tonkin, the two countries remain at odds over competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, particularly around the Spratly and Paracel Islands and surrounding maritime zones.
Macron also announced that France would deepen its support for Vietnam in key sectors such as critical minerals, high-speed rail, civil nuclear energy, and aerospace. He emphasized cooperation on energy transition, noting France’s intention to help Vietnam move away from coal while expanding its capacity in renewables and civil nuclear power.
This marks Macron’s first official visit to Vietnam since taking office in 2017.
France and Vietnam share a comprehensive strategic partnership—Hanoi’s highest diplomatic designation—an honor it also extends to Russia, China, and the United States.
