Mackenzie Scott Did Wonders For Her Reputation By Splitting From Ex-Husband Jeff Bezos

Jeff Bezos' reputation has really paid the price for his relationship with Lauren Sánchez Bezos. Before Jeff kickstarted his romance with Lauren in a controversial way, back in 2019, the tech billionaire kept a relatively low profile, not even making a huge show of his exorbitant wealth. However, any shred of humility the Amazon founder had went out the window once he started dating Lauren. In addition to splurging over $20 million on a lavish Venetian wedding that was low-key boring for the Bezoses' guests, Lauren and Jeff also left everyone cringing by holding a family foam party onboard his $500 million superyacht. By all accounts, it seemed that Lauren and Jeff were desperately trying to cling to their youth in the cringiest way possible. While the celebrity couple blew large chunks of his wealth on their vanity, Jeff's ex-wife Mackenzie Scott made good use of his money. 

Scott got $35.6 billion from her divorce from Jeff in 2019 and later vowed to donate most of her wealth as part of her promise to Bill Gates and Warren Buffett's The Giving Pledge. In her pledge letter, Mackenzie acknowledged that she had a "disproportionate amount of money to share" and vowed to "keep at it until the safe is empty." It's safe to say that she meant those words with all her heart because the philanthropist quietly donated $19 billion in the five years following their divorce alone. That number only becomes more impressive when we consider that her ex-husband, who is worth $161 billion at the time of writing, has given away just $2.28 billion in his lifetime, according to Forbes' estimates. In fact, Scott donated $2 billion in 2024 alone, per Fortune, so she already has Jeff beat.  

There is no doubt that Lauren Sánchez Bezos could use a lesson in humility from Jeff Bezos' ex, to salvage her soured reputation. While the helicopter pilot gained notoriety as one of the worst-dressed stars at Donald Trump's 2025 inauguration, Mackenzie Scott garnered plenty of good publicity with a generous and quiet donation to a cause that, notably, the Republican leader was vehemently opposed to: DEI. Scott donated $70 million to a UNCF campaign that strived to reduce the glaring funding gaps between Historically Black Colleges and Universities and their white counterparts (via Fortune). Her commitment to DEI didn't end there, either. Scott also donated another $42 million to 10,000 Degrees, a foundation that provides more educational opportunities for underprivileged students who primarily stem from POC communities.

Although the philanthropist stays out of the spotlight and doesn't publicly announce her donations, Scott's efforts haven't gone unnoticed. In fact, several stars who put Jeff and Lauren's June 2025 wedding on blast couldn't help but shade the couple by praising her. While the tech billionaire and his wife enjoyed their lavish wedding weekend, actor Mia Farrow posted a photo of Scott on Instagram, enthusing, "How awesome is MacKenzie Scott! (Jeff Bezos first wife & mother of his 4 children)." The "Rosemary's Baby" star also made sure that everyone knew her donations had reached $19 billion by 2024. In contrast, Rosie O'Donnell took direct aim at Jeff's life choices through a self-penned poem shared on Substack. The outspoken comedian labeled Lauren a "fake fembot wife" and described Scott as "salt of the earth" in comparison, expressing confusion about why Jeff had let a wonderful woman like her go in the first place.