Hillary Clinton Was 'Emotionally Drained' After Discussing the Monica Lewinsky Affair in New Documentary

(Michael Rozman/Warner Bros.)

Hillary Clinton is opening up about her entire life -- the good, the bad and the painful. The 72-year-old former first lady and secretary of state appears on Thursday's The Ellen DeGeneres Show to discuss her upcoming Hulu documentary, Hillary. 

Ellen DeGeneres asks Hillary about her decision to open up about her husband Bill Clinton's infamous affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky in the documentary. 

Recommended Videos



"It was [tough to relive]. Once I agreed to cooperate, the director said, 'Well, we're going to talk about everything,' and I said, 'OK,' and yet when it actually came time, yeah it's hard," Hillary admits. 

She calls the decision to stay in her marriage "the gutsiest personal decision I ever made," adding she couldn't have done a film about her life and not included the scandal. 

"It was a really emotionally draining experience to go through it again," Hillary says. "But I have to say, once I saw the whole four hours of the documentary, I hope that our talking about this, my willingness to address all of this, really does help other people. There are lessons. There are lessons from my life, our times. People need to be thoughtful about the decisions they make in their own lives. And we should be kinder and more supportive to everybody who makes the best decisions they think they can make."

She also talks about the conflicting views from other women about her decision to stay married to the former president following the news of his affair.  

"A lot of the women would say, 'I just can't support her. I don't like her because she stayed with her husband.' And they would say, 'OK, why is that?' And people would talk, but pretty soon they would say, 'You know, that happened to my sister. That happened to my friend,'" Hillary says. "I always said everybody needs to make the best decision for you and your family, and toward the end of the film, one of the people who's both a friend and worked in my campaigns said, 'You know, it's such a strange conversation, because some of the very same people who would say, "I could never support her," would say, literally in the next breath, "But I love her husband. I love Bill Clinton."' Well, I do too."

Both Hillary and Bill appear in the documentary talking about the affair, part of which is shown in the trailer for the film, which was released last month. 

In the trailer, an emotional Hillary talks about the very public scandal, saying of her husband, "I didn't want anything to do with him." 

Hillary comes out on Hulu on March 6.

RELATED CONTENT:

Bill and Hillary Clinton Reflect on Monica Lewinsky Affair in New Doc

Hillary Clinton Visits With Meghan Markle and Meets Baby Archie

Hillary Clinton on Meghan Markle's Treatment by U.K. Tabloids