When he was married to Katy Perry in 2011, I thought that Russell Brand was kind of a New Age kook–a little weird, but more or less harmless. But over the last several years he’s adopted a lot of anti-vax and COVID denialism talking points on his YouTube channel, as well as pro-Russian conspiracy theories, and I’m not linking to them on principle but all of that stuff is right there on YouTube. He recently interviewed Tucker Carlson on YouTube as well, so you know if he’s giving someone like that a platform…he’s bad news. I know that Katy Perry isn’t without her faults. She supported Rick Caruso, the Republican billionaire who spent $104 million (some of which was his own money, I gather) to run for mayor of Los Angeles and still lost to Karen Bass. She also performed at the coronation which isn’t great either. But her ex-husband has crossed the divide from “distasteful” to “demented.”
With that preamble out of the way, Russell has recently said words on Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge about his marriage to Katy. He called their 14-month long marriage chaotic because of all the public attention and said the time with her was “disconnected”.
Russell Brand is reflecting on the “chaotic” time in his life when he was married to the “amazing” Katy Perry.
On Sunday’s episode of Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge, the actor and comedian, 48, opened up about life in the public eye during the time he spent married to the “Firework” singer, 38.
After Brand recalled how he “didn’t really start making a proper living” as an actor until he was about 30 years old, Bear Grylls asked if that was around the time he was married to Perry.
“You had to live through so much that publicly,” Grylls, 49, noted of Brand’s marriage to the American Idol judge.
“That was when I was sort of most in the public eye and working in America,” Brand said, adding that “some aspects of [that time] were amazing.”
“She’s an amazing person,” the Forgetting Sarah Marshall star said of his ex. “It was kind of incredible to live for a moment in that eye of the cyclone type aspect of fame.”
“Aside from my sort of feelings of affection for Katy, it’s a time that I remember has been a little bit chaotic and a bit for me… a little disconnected,” he shared.
To read between the lines here, I honestly think Russell may have felt emasculated by Katy’s fame and that’s why he felt “disconnected” from her. 2011 was shortly after Katy’s album Teenage Dream came out, which was a huge hit. Katy was becoming a huge star, covering magazines, going on world tours, etc. Russell did okay but he never became the household name that Katy did. He broke up with Katy via text message on New Years Eve 2011, which is so cowardly, and then she got entangled with John Mayer (like who didn’t in those days). I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a fan of Katy anymore–I was back in those days–but I’m glad she didn’t end up with him. I’m sure it was a “chaotic” time. But I think Russell has shown himself to be a chaotic person, and not in a benign, I-sometimes-forget-to-wear-shoes way, but in a dark way.
photos credit: Max Powell, PacificCoastNews.com / Avalon, Dennis Van Tine / Avalon, Getty
Those pictures are perfect. They certainly seem disconnected, and he comes off like a deer in headlights.
I think he looks super strung out. (Even though he was supposedly sober).
He looks like Rasputin.
He might have meant “disconnected” in terms of feeling disconnected from society, reality, humanity, or just himself. Either way, when he was with Katy was the last time I cared about him, so…
He could also have meant disconnected in the sense she was touring for 12 months from Feb 2011. But he’s a complete douche and she’s not much better so agreed, who really cares!
Russell was also sober at that time and I remember rumors at the time of the divorce that Katy’s hard-partying had something to do with it. That would definitely lead to a disconnect.
Russell is also 10 years older than her. If Katy was partying, I say if because that came from Russell’s team trying to get sympathy for how he ended things. I doubt she was partying hard because she was touring for 12 months.
I have disliked Russell Brand for years. I think he’s a terrible person and nothing I’ve read about him has changed my mind so far.
Pretty sure she is out living her superstar singer life with her superstar actor husband and not even recollecting Russell Brand as anything more than a blip in her timeline.
💯
I’m just really disappointed in the person he has become. He was always problematic at times, but he used to speak (and act) with such clarity and compassion about things like addiction and homelessness. Now he’s a cheerleader for a war criminal and indulging a white supremacist with a M&M fetish.
*sigh* Drugs are bad, kids.
My feelings too. Back in the days of his Radio 6 show and the first book I really liked him. His openness on his addictions etc.
Now he gives me the serious ick. He’s even out there doing ‘blood and soil’ speeches. Not someone I want to see back in the mainstream.
Yes! I went from finding him irritating to begrudgingly enjoying him through his radio show back in the day, but he has gone off the deep end.
My best friend is living with a guy with a range of mental health and addiction issues and during a period when his parents were acknowledging that their son has issues (it comes and goes, partly due to his endless lies and partly due to them being rich and liking to pretend their life is perfect) one of his dad’s friends who was an alcoholic came to visit for the day and at one point rang Russell Brand who spent an hour on the phone talking about the situation, addiction, etc. It didn’t necessarily change anything but I appreciate anyone taking time out of their day to try and help someone in pain.
Sadly this guy doesn’t really want to be helped and prefers blaming the world for his issues while Russell Brand uses his platform to do harm. People are complicated.
The “wellness” to fascist pipeline is very real, both in 1930s Germany and today. Fascinating book talking about how one of the core groups supporting the Nazis was “failed bohemians.” You can see it today as well, so many alt-right types, starting with Steve Bannon, have unsuccessful Hollywood careers in their past.
@Concern Fae which book is that? Sounds so interesting!
Brit here – cannot stand him, never understood his appeal and why he kept getting gigs. He has ALWAYS been an a$$hat. He fancies himself as a provocateur but he’s really just an attention seeking twat.
And yeah I can imagine he didn’t like being the husband of someone who was more famous and wealthier than he. She’s well rid of him TBH.
American here. Just chiming in to say that I think we under use “twat” to our detriment.
Totally agree. One of those types to take over all panel shows and talk over much funnier guests.
I hate this whole argument about feeling emasculated,disconnected etc.
She didn’t force him to marry her at gunpoint. He was perfectly happy to take part in a very OTT wedding… I hated him when I saw the horribly unflattering picture he took of her asleep on their honeymoon.
She’s you new wife and you do that? That’s not funny, that bullying.
He also basically blamed her for his wandering eye during his sex addiction phase and said she was boring to have sex with. Which is a horrible thing to broadcast about someone who was your wife.
He always struck me as one of those guys who liked the idea of certain women, but cannot handle the actually reality of being in a relationship. Like, I’m sure KP was lots of fun and surreal and whatever image people may have had of her, but she was also a normal person who didn’t live in makeup or had family issues or got tired or whatever. I just remember him posting a photo of her in bed without makeup, and you could tell she was surprised and upset he was taking the photo. He’s not as smart or clever as he thinks he is.
Yes
I always had a bad opinion of him after posting that photo. I think it was without her permission too. It was a very mean and immature thing to do.
I listened to a couple of his YouTube episodes because I was interested to hear his take based on his previous thoughtful conversations around addiction, but yes he is unfortunately gone full Insurrectionist (if he was American) and is doing real damage under the guise of being an intellectual unafraid to challenge the mainstream media and government’s take on things.
As someone above said, people are complicated. Just because he did good work in one field (addiction and mental health) doesn’t mean that he has it right in all fields (his treatment of his SOs and beliefs).
Katy Perry is involved in another real estate debacle. As per the Daily Fail it involves a veteran who is suing to stop/overturn the sale of his home to Katy. She seems a nasty piece of work.
I used to be such a fan of his. But in recent years he has went the way of so many other rich white dudes: peddling disinformation and conspiracies. He has revealed himself to be as pedestrian as any other rich white dude. Such an utter disappointment and snoozefest he has turned out to be.
Nah. They just had nothing in common and were very different people. They were infatuated with each other, and when that wears off … you see who the other person is and if you are compatible. He felt disconnected because they weren’t.
No matter what people think of Katy Perry it was pretty sh$&tty he ended the marriage by text. That was very immature . And I do agree, even back then I thought one of the reasons why he ended it was because of the insecurities he has as a male that his wife was more successful in her career than he was. His support of Tucker Carlson just proves my theory even more.
She has such a weird picker. All her mates come off as sex addicts.
All I remember of them from this time is that Katy was best friends with RiRi, and RiRi refused to go to their wedding. I have no doubt that he has been the horrible person that he is now, all along.
Lots of blind items about him being R@pey but because he has good lawyers he can’t be named