Jackie Siegel

Dimitri: Can you tell us about the Queen of Versailles Broadway Show and TV Series?

Jackie Siegel: It’s becoming like a life of its own.

Dimitri: Let’s start from the beginning. How did you come to the idea of the Queen of Versailles?

Jackie Siegel: It all started back when I was in college, trying to pay my way through school. I worked as a waitress and taught exercise classes. Being physically fit, people suggested I enter beauty pageants to win money and use that to pay for school. I decided to give it a try—and I started winning. Before I knew it, I was legitimately wearing a tiara, not just because I wanted to, but because I held actual titles. Not royal titles, as in Europe, but beauty pageant titles.

Then, I went on to win the Mrs. Florida America pageant and was crowned Mrs. Florida. Florida is a tough state to win in because, everyone here is beautiful. It’s summer all year long, so there’s no time to let your body go. You’ve got to be on your A game all year round. So, winning in Florida was a big deal as there’s a lot of competition. I took over the pageant so naturally people started calling me “Queen Jackie” and “Queen of Florida.”

On our honeymoon, my husband and I went to Paris and visited Versailles. We absolutely loved it. And on the way home, my husband said, “I want to build us a beautiful home. We’re going to have a beautiful family with many children.” He asked what I thought about the architecture of Versailles, and I said it’s beautiful; I love it. He suggested, well, let’s go with that architecture and I want to name it Versailles. And I thought, who names a house anyway, let alone Versailles? So we agreed. And then, as it turns out, I didn’t know the house would be as big as it was. I knew it would be a lovely house, but I didn’t realize it would be grand. He was building a palace. I didn’t think it was possible, from where I came from.

One day, while I was at the opening of the Versace store in Beverly Hills, a documentary filmmaker named Lauren Greenfield approached me and asked, “What do you do?” I told her, “I’m a mother, and I’m building a big house.” That’s all I knew. I had eight children, so my life was very busy raising a family. Lauren came to visit the house, saw my family, and said, “How would you feel about me documenting the building of your house? I’ll give you the footage, and maybe I’ll get it on HBO.” I thought, “Sure, that sounds nice.”

As the house grew more elaborate, Lauren realized she had something special on her hands. That documentary ended up winning the Sundance Film Festival, among other awards, and it remains one of the top 50 documentaries ever made. It’s still being talked about 12 years later and has become the most-watched documentary globally. But of course, a title was needed for the film. Given the crown and the palace, the media had already started calling me the “Queen of Florida,” so Lauren went with “The Queen of Versailles.” And that’s how I evolved from the Queen of Florida to the Queen of Versailles.

After the documentary, I was bombarded with TV show offers. However, my husband wasn’t comfortable with cameras in our house at that time, especially with our children being young. So, we took a break. But about three years ago, we agreed we were ready to do a show about finishing Versailles. That led to the series The Queen of Versailles Reigns Again, which aired on Discovery Plus and Amazon Prime.

We shot two seasons, with season two filmed at the actual Versailles in France. I think we were one of only three reality shows ever granted permission to film on the grounds of Versailles.

Dimitri: Wow.

Jackie Siegel: It was a very special privilege and truly magical. They dressed us in the attire of the period, so I was Queen Marie Antoinette. Everything’s been a success.

Then, one day, I met a woman on the beach in Cocoa Beach, Florida, where we own the Cocoa Beach Pier. She mentioned she was interested in creating a Broadway show inspired by the site, and I was immediately intrigued. I have never heard of meeting someone on a beach giving you a Broadway proposal.

Dimitri: From all the places.

Jackie Siegel: We exchanged numbers, and six months later we started working on the script. And now it’s six and a half years later, and it’s already out in Boston. Then, it goes to Broadway in the spring of 2025 and 2026.

Dimitri: Oh, fantastic.

Jackie Siegel: Yes. And I hope to be done enough with Versailles to move in by January. It is my goal right now.

Dimitri: So, how many years have you spent actually on construction? It’s almost a grand project. I mean, it’s massive.

Jackie Siegel: It’s almost 20.

Dimitri: 20 years!

Jackie Siegel: Almost 20 years, just shy of 20 years. But I think we will have all the finishes by the time we finish. It’ll be 20.

Dimitri: Oh, wow. How much does it resemble the original Versailles?

Jackie Siegel: It’s an inspiration. We’ve incorporated elements like the iconic mansard roof, which we replicated, as well as the grand hall. We’re even building our own hall of mirrors. There’s a lot of marble, the ornate molding that evokes Marie Antoinette’s style, frescoes, matching curtains, and fabric wall panels—all of which have influenced the design of my bedroom. Some areas of the house are inspired by Versailles, while others feature a more loosely French aesthetic. So, our house is more of an inspiration. We also have a nightclub and an indoor swimming pool that’s the same size and dimensions of the one at the Finance House on the grounds of Versailles. We stayed at that house when we were there on the grounds.

Dimitri: At Versailles, which I know because I’ve been to it several times. You stayed on the grounds, not at the hotel nearby.

Jackie Siegel: On the actual grounds.

We copied the dimensions pretty much. I think the same is true for the indoor swimming pool.

Dimitri: Did you use the same palette for your bedroom? It is like Marie Antoinette’s bedroom.

Jackie Siegel: I think she had more red. I prefer the red one, but I will probably do more lavender than red because I live in Florida; I’m a Florida girl. I’m doing the heavy embroidery and the thick gold molding, the frescoes and chandeliers, the beautiful bed, the gorgeous floors; and all our floors are inlaid. We’ve got inlaid marble floors that are pieces of art, as well as amethyst topaz and turquoise on the floors, which are fantastic.

Dimitri: Did you do anything similar to the Grand to the Ballroom of the Versailles?

Jackie Siegel: Ballroom, which I call the Hall of Mirrors.

Dimitri: Okay, okay. Yeah.

Jackie Siegel: I forgot how many columns we have exactly. I don’t know if it’s 65 columns, but I also plan to get some of their candelabras. I also have some of the artisans who do the upkeep of Versailles. It’s a company called Rank, and they have masters that do the wood inlaid floors. They’ve been carrying on the technique for several hundred years and several generations. We have the same artisans passed down in the family who are helping us with our Versailles here in America.

Dimitri: What will the total size be when it’s all finished?

Jackie Siegel: If you include our guest house and everything, I would say around 100,000ft². But, I mean, the real Versailles is probably, what, like, a million?

We also had some ups and downs.

Dimitri: I can imagine that in 20 years.

Jackie Siegel: I mean, we stopped construction twice. You know, we had a death in the family. We lost our daughter.

Dimitri: Some tough times. I’m so sorry to hear that.

Jackie Siegel: Thank you. Yes, but it’s given me a new purpose for Versailles. Going through all that pain, I now realize that Versailles is an asset we can use to raise awareness, help save lives, and do the greater good in this world. People want to see Versailles and hear speeches and would like like-minded people. This house will be a wonderful tool for me because people want to see it. We can also raise awareness of all different concerns in the world in general.

Dimitri: Absolutely. So this is when you started the Victoria’s Voice Foundation. Is that correct?

Jackie Siegel: Yes. We started Victoria’s Voice when my daughter passed away. We also bring a lot of awareness about naloxone, which is the antidote for opioid overdose. It brings people back to life. If someone has Narcan, it’s naloxone. You spray it up the nose and it brings someone back to life long enough to get them to the hospital to call an ambulance.

Dimitri: There’s not enough awareness of the antidotes. In Europe, it’s starting to creep up as well now.

Jackie Siegel: Oh. Is it?

Dimitri: Yeah, it’s becoming a problem across France and EU countries.

Monaco is nice, small, and clean, so it has no big country issues. It’s smaller than Beverly Hills.

Jackie Siegel: It’s tough. I love Monaco, though.

Dimitri: It’s only two square miles.

Jackie Siegel: Yeah, you can walk it.

Dimitri: Yeah. It’s highly secure, but it’s an entirely different situation if you go to Nice or Cannes.

Jackie Siegel: The problem is that some people who use drugs casually, not intending to overdose, may not realize the dangers. Perhaps they take a pill when they go out or use a vape, it’s just part of what they do. But what’s happening on the streets is that bad people are lacing drugs with synthetic chemicals, and even one use can be fatal and that’s what is terrifying.

One thing I can do, with the help of what you’re doing, is raise awareness and warn people to be very careful and encourage them to not use. However, if people are going to do drugs anyway, there are tests out there. People should also carry Narcan if their friends are using. Hopefully, they don’t do drugs at all, but everyone makes their own choices. There are these options to at least help protect themselves. I’m just trying to get the word out, the information, and educate people.

Dimitri: You’re doing a good thing but also suffering through pain.

Jackie Siegel: If I can spare another family from losing a life to drugs.

Dimitri: Absolutely.

Jackie Siegel: That’s what’s important too.

Dimitri: Have you ever considered stopping the construction?

Jackie Siegel: I think I was prepared to at one point in 2008 when my husband and the world had a financial crisis. I don’t know if you’re old enough to remember that.

Dimitri: Remember, absolutely.

Jackie Siegel: My husband’s bankers forced us to halt construction on Versailles and put it up for sale. At that point, Versailles had only existed in my mind, and I had to come to terms with the fact that I might never have it. I needed to detach myself emotionally, as it was no longer within my control. I had mentally prepared myself for this, especially given my past experiences. I had been married before and was an avid antique collector—things like masons, dresdens, and even armor pieces dating back 600-800 years. I was deeply attached to these items because they held meaning for me.

But when I got divorced, I had to let go of it all—every material possession. I realized that things like these aren’t what truly matter in life. Happiness and finding it is the most important thing. The house, the land, possessions—they’re not ours to keep. We’re only here for a limited time and in the end, we can’t take any of it with us.

Dimitri: Absolutely.

Jackie Siegel: I learned that way. But I’m enjoying it while I’m here.

Dimitri: Definitely. The main thing is peace and family. That’s it.

Jackie Siegel: That’s what I did. I ran away from my ex-husband. Just the baby and I started a new life. And I couldn’t be happier; it was good for all of us.

Dimitri: Starting a new life is essential. No one says that you have to be stuck in the same situation. You hear all the time when some people, okay, well, I’m, I was born here, and that’s it. You know, I’m not going to move. I’m not going to do anything. It happens too often. It’s okay to change. It’s okay to move to experience new places.

Jackie Siegel: Many people give up because of fear of the unknown.

Dimitri: Exactly.

Jackie Siegel: You know, they get stuck from paycheck to paycheck and worry about what would happen if they failed.

But it’s important to approach life with a positive attitude, work hard, and persevere. If you put the right intentions out into the world, success will follow. I’m a firm believer that you create your destiny.

Dimitri: Oh, 100%.

Jackie Siegel: I didn’t realize my husband was a “King of Timeshare” when I met him as the Queen of Florida. So, the Queen and the King.

Dimitri: So perfect.

Dimitri: Your brand of the Queen of Versailles. You’ve been branching out, and now you have a coffee brand. So tell us a little bit about your new endeavor.

Jackie Siegel: One of my friends owns a coffee plantation and a finca in Guatemala. The land is centered around an entire volcano—they own the whole volcano! It’s spectacular. On the plantation, the coffee beans thrive in the rich, fertile soil, which has been nourished by volcanic ash over thousands of years. This unique combination of nutrients deeply enriches the soil, feeding the plants and enhancing the flavor of the coffee beans. Based on my own tastings and what others say, everyone says it’s the best coffee in the world. We’ve even received orders from Dubai, and it’s going to be sold in Saudi Arabia. So for that level of palates, you know it must be good.

We handpick only the ripest beans from the vines. There are about 5,000 local Guatemalan women employed on the farm, and they carefully select the best beans by hand. While many other coffee companies use machines that harvest every bean, even the unripe or overripe ones. People are thrilled on our farm and in Guatemala because we’re bringing employment to the area. I’ve even gone out picking the coffee beans with them, so I truly understand the process firsthand.

Dimitri: This is fantastic, especially since you visited and saw it yourself. These days, everything is machine-processed, and anything handmade is hand-picked, and fewer chemicals are used. You know, I think this is a privilege. I mean, we as a civilization were progressing and, at the same time, returning to nature.

Are you selling coffee in Europe yet?

Jackie Siegel: It can be ordered on qvcoffee.com. QV stands for Queen of Versailles. We ship anywhere in the world!