Russell Brand Denies Indecent Assault as Trial Proceeds
WHO:
Deadline - Russell Brand is the defendant in the indecent-assault case.
Deadline - The judge and jurors are involved in the proceedings at Southwark Crown Court.
TMZ - Russell Brand is the defendant; the judge told jurors about the charge.
WHAT:
The Hollywood Reporter - The court played Russell Brand’s November 16, 2023, police interview, in which he said, “I led a very promiscuous life in the past” and “I have never engaged in nonconsensual sexual activity.”
The Hollywood Reporter - In a December 2023 police statement, Brand said he had kissed “hundreds” of people in public and that physical contact occurred at events; he also said he had sexual encounters in “countless locations and scenarios.”
The Hollywood Reporter - Brand said that after casual sexual encounters, he sometimes left or asked partners to leave shortly afterward, and argued that consensual encounters had been “unfavorably reframed decades later.”
The Hollywood Reporter - Brand alleged that a documentary and newspaper reports contained “false, anonymized allegations” and said subsequent media and police invitations for further allegations led to encounters being “invented or reimagined.”
The Hollywood Reporter - Brand said a Bournemouth hotel-room encounter after a comedy gig in 1999, an alleged 2004 assault in a Soho bar, and an alleged 2009 assault at his Hampstead home were consensual.
Yahoo - The allegations concern six women and incidents from 1999 to 2009; Brand originally faced seven charges: three counts of rape, three of sexual assault, and one of indecent assault.
Yahoo - The allegation underlying the attempted-indecent-assault count involves a female MTV employee who said Brand grabbed her arm and tried to drag her into a toilet.
Yahoo - Brand has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges and denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
Yahoo - The court heard four police statements given by Brand.
Yahoo - A fourth accuser testified that Brand assaulted her while she worked at a radio station in 2004 or 2005; she alleged he pushed her against a wall, forcibly kissed her, and touched her breasts and buttocks.
Variety - The charge was replaced with a count of attempted indecent assault.
Deadline - The judge ruled there was “insufficient evidence” for an indecent-assault charge against Russell Brand, and reduced the charge as the prosecution wrapped its case.
Deadline - The trial continues after the charge was reduced.
TMZ - Brand is not guilty of the indecent-assault charge as charged; the charge is being replaced by another one, and his legal fight is not over.
WHERE:
Deadline - The case is being heard at London’s Southwark Crown Court.
WHEN:
The Hollywood Reporter - The trial could last up to six weeks.
WHY:
Deadline - The judge reduced the charge because the judge said there was “insufficient evidence” for it.
HOW:
Yahoo - Prosecutors said the six women did not know one another and came forward independently.
Variety - Mr Justice Bennathan made the decision midway through the trial.
Deadline - The judge informed jurors of the evidentiary ruling as the prosecution concluded its case.
TMZ - The indecent-assault charge is being replaced by another charge.
(UPDATED October 27, 2026 22:10 UTC)
At London’s Southwark Crown Court, a judge ruled there was insufficient evidence for the indecent-assault charge against Russell Brand and replaced it with attempted indecent assault as prosecutors concluded their case. Brand has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges involving six women and denies wrongdoing; prosecutors say the women came forward independently. Jurors heard police interviews and statements in which Brand described past sexual encounters and maintained that the encounters at issue were consensual.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 19:05 UTC)
A judge at London’s Southwark Crown Court has ruled there was insufficient evidence for one indecent-assault charge against Russell Brand, replacing it with a count of attempted indecent assault as prosecutors wrapped up their case. That allegation involves a former MTV employee who said Brand grabbed her arm and tried to pull her into a toilet; Brand has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges and denies wrongdoing. The case involves allegations by six women concerning incidents from 1999 to 2009, and a fourth accuser testified that Brand pushed her against a wall, forcibly kissed her, and touched her while she worked at a radio station.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 17:08 UTC)
A judge at London’s Southwark Crown Court has replaced the indecent-assault charge against Russell Brand with a count of attempted indecent assault, ruling there was insufficient evidence for the original charge. Mr Justice Bennathan informed jurors of the decision as the prosecution wrapped up its case. The trial is continuing, and Brand’s legal fight is not over.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 16:16 UTC)
A judge at London’s Southwark Crown Court ruled there was insufficient evidence for the indecent-assault charge against Russell Brand as prosecutors wrapped up their case. The judge told jurors the charge would be reduced and replaced with another charge. The trial continues, and Brand’s legal case is not over.