Russell Brand Represents Dark Side to Comedy Ciruit

Last October, the comedian and ‘beloved’ Essex-born celebrity Russell Brand was accused of multiple accounts of sexual harassment including rape, indecent exposure and forced oral penetration. The world was shocked when comedian Russell, who has been no stranger to telling lewd and tasteless jokes revolving around sexual assault during his stand-up sets in the past, was revealed in scooby-doo-like fashion to be a predator. Die-hard fans of Brand who label thmourned their self-titled ‘Messiah’ and blamed the inter-workings of the modern-day press for the accusations that have surrounded Brand ever since 2006, which have come to the surface through the intensely thorough and revealing Channel Four Dispatches investigative documentary.

When news broke that Channel Four would be dedicating a dispatches episode to exposing an extremely famous British comedian, Russell Brand was already the first in line to take centre stage, rumoured to be the number-one suspect. Video clips of Brand’s stand-up performances where he would stand in front of audiences in the thousands making ‘jokes’ that revolved around making women cry purposefully during oral sex did the rounds and appeared all across social media. This made the reality even less shocking when Brand’s supposed true public persona came to light, exposed through harrowing tales of forced and violent episodes of sexual assault, at times with girlfriends aged only sixteen years old. Some of the most shocking details were delivered by comedian David Schloss, who revealed how those in the comedy circle were for years being warned about Brand’s ‘bad behaviour’, whether it be through group chats set up by women in the industry to warn each other of the ones to look out for, or the ‘bad apples’ in the comedy industry as they have become to be known, the old phrase that has recurred time and time again in the conversation around public exposure of someone we are supposed to love and trust.

I have never been particularly enthralled by Russell Brand. If you asked me what he did before the accusations of him came to light I would briefly mention St. Trinians and some slight mumblings about looking like Johnny Depp. I am not going to label Russell Brand as ‘funny’ or possessing any comedic value as I believe that a comedian is someone who has the talent to command a room without having to rely on topics relating to sexual assault. After watching some of his stand-up performances nothing stood out to me particularly about Brand the comedian, but it was in fact his TikTok which taught me the most about exactly what kind of person Russell Brand so desperately likes to come across as to his die-hard fans. Miles apart from the heavily eyelinered, chaotic and foul-mouthing comedian character seen on television from 2006-2014, Brand is now recognised by his audience as, well, Jesus, swapping tales of sexual conquests for enlightenment. His long, untamed dark locks cascade around him as he takes up the role of Messiah in his latest hit: convincing the general public that he is an innocent man who hasn’t been trailed around by accusations every year relating to public exposure or unwanted sexual advances.

 I understand that Brand has been in and out of rehab in the past to treat sex addiction and drug use, but for broadcasting services which worked alongside Brand in the past to sit back and admit they never saw any issue with his behaviour around women - this lands as the real joke in this whole situation. Society’s track record when it comes to exposing and catching predators right at the start when flags are being raised is extremely poor. The time is too late. Once the evidence has been gathered in a clear and concise format, the movie roles have been given, the stage has been expanded, the fanbase has grown and their facade has grown stronger.  Celebrities who have become so familiar with being protected by society have managed to get to a place so far from who they used to be that any accusations brought to light do not have the potential to even touch their shiny, new, revamped persona.

The danger of figures like Brand proliferating through the comedy circuit is that they have managed to position themselves in a sector which makes them untouchable from worries concerning what they actually stand for. Everything surrounding their entire persona is treated like one big joke. The act transcends from being just an act, and everything individuals like Brand touch becomes light-hearted. The Dispatches documentary didn’t reveal any new information surrounding Brand’s '‘risque’ stage persona, it just confirmed what many have seen and known for years when it came to trusting individuals like Brand. When sexual assault is treated as a recurring joke in comedy, it becomes one within society. Every joke told that revolves around the degradation and mockery of the intensely imprinting and traumatic experience of rape makes it into a light-hearted topic which can be mocked, creating a culture of disbelief and doubt. It opens up a dangerous pathway of permissiveness, setting the tone for potential predators who will recognise how Brand has exerted control over how his public persona is perceived by the general public. The four women who have bravely come out and shared intimate details of what Russell Brand put them through are already being doubted online- most notably for not revealing their identities. Will knowing these four brave women’s identities make their accounts any more/less believable? Is this really what we should be focusing on in the conversation surrounding sexual harassment.

I think progress can only be made in the fight to get sexual assault survivors justice when we act quickly as a society. We act quick to recongise that red flags are being raised multiple times year by year and that a blatant pattern is forming. Without this vigilance and ability to act predators will slip through the net and before we know it they will have won over us all through their laughs and shiny facade. We cannot afford to make this mistake anymore for the sake of other victims of sexual assault who want to speak up but are told otherwise by the ones in power who force them to retreat into their selves. Now it is time to put their narratives centre stage.