Russell Brand Convicted: Former ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’ Star Found Guilty of Rape and Sexual Assault in London
Russell Brand built one of the most recognizable personas in British comedy, rising through music television, Channel 4’s ‘Big Brother’ and a BBC Radio 2 show before Hollywood came calling. Along the way he shared screen space with names like Tom Cruise, Mila Kunis, Jonah Hill and Helen Mirren in films such as ‘Arthur’ and ‘Rock of Ages’.
His real breakout arrived with ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’, where he played the scene-stealing rock star Aldous Snow, a role he reprised in ‘Get Him to the Greek’. He also lent his voice to the ‘Despicable Me’ and ‘Minions’ movies, and was briefly married to pop star Katy Perry.
That image began to unravel when The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s ‘Dispatches’ published a joint investigation in which women accused Brand of sexual assault and misconduct. The Metropolitan Police opened an investigation that September, and he was charged in April 2025. Brand has consistently said he never engaged in non-consensual activity and pleaded not guilty.
The case that reached Southwark Crown Court eventually grew to cover 6 women and incidents between 1999 and 2009. Prosecutors told the jury the complainants did not know each other, and Brand’s wife, Laura Gallacher, gave evidence in support of her husband.
On Thursday, the jury found Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. He had faced 7 counts in total, and the jury cleared him of 2 other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault.
The rape conviction relates to a 21-year-old fan who met him after a 2009 stand-up show at the Hammersmith Apollo. The sexual assault convictions cover groping a former MTV colleague at a Soho bar in 2004, kissing and groping a radio station worker in the mid-2000s, and assaulting a Channel 4 worker in 2009 after she had been made to give him a massage.
Before entering the dock, Brand told his wife that he loved her, then showed no visible emotion beyond closing his eyes as the rape verdict was read out. Judge Joel Bennathan told him a custodial sentence of some length would follow and refused his application to stay on bail, so Brand was remanded in custody.
Sentencing is set for Monday, and a rape conviction in the UK can carry a life sentence. Within minutes of the verdicts, it was reported that Brand is also being investigated over further rape allegations made by 2 women.
Brand testified during the trial, insisting he was the target of a media conspiracy to paint him as a sexual predator. He told the court that consent mattered to him more than sex itself. Ahead of the case he had also described the charges as politically motivated and spoken openly about his newfound Christian faith.
Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who led the Metropolitan Police investigation, said Brand used his influence, status and fame to exploit and sexually offend against women. He also praised the courage, resilience and determination of the women who came forward, and said he hoped the conviction would show that nobody is above the law, however famous or powerful.
A senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service described Brand as a predator who deliberately used his growing fame to create situations in which he could pursue women regardless of their wishes. Brand’s father told the BBC after the verdict that he was shocked, calling the outcome wrong and devastating.
The conviction closes a dramatic chapter for a performer who moved from British television to Hollywood comedies and then reinvented himself as an online wellness and political personality. In recent years he built a following on YouTube as an outspoken critic of American politics.
Those Hollywood roles in ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’ and ‘Get Him to the Greek’ remain his most widely seen screen work, and the verdict will inevitably shape how they are discussed going forward. For the women who gave evidence, some of whom said they only felt ready to speak after being approached by reporters, the outcome brings a long and public process to a close.
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