The British comedian and actor was remanded in custody after a London jury convicted him of four offenses involving four women.
LONDON, ENGLAND — British comedian and actor Russell Brand was convicted Thursday of raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others, ending a four-week trial over allegations dating to the height of his entertainment career. He was taken into custody and is due to be sentenced Monday.
The jury at Southwark Crown Court found Brand, 51, guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault involving four women. He was acquitted of two other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault. Brand had denied all seven charges and maintained that his sexual encounters were consensual. The charges considered by the jury involved six women and allegations spanning from 1999 to 2009, while the offenses for which he was convicted occurred between 2004 and 2009.
Judge Joel Bennathan refused to release Brand on bail after the verdicts and remanded him in custody. The judge told Brand that his convictions, including the rape conviction, meant he faced a “significant custodial term.” Sentencing is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 9. Brand had appeared in court throughout the trial and gave evidence in his own defense.
Prosecutors argued that Brand used his growing fame and influence to manipulate women and disregard whether they consented to sexual activity. The Crown Prosecution Service said the four convictions involved separate women and incidents that occurred as Brand’s public profile expanded from stand-up comedy into radio, television and acting. The women involved in the case are legally entitled to lifelong anonymity, and their names have not been published.
Brand rejected the prosecution’s account. During the trial, he acknowledged that he had lived a promiscuous and reckless lifestyle but said consent had always been essential to him. His defense argued that some encounters had been consensual and were later reinterpreted after allegations about Brand became public in 2023. The jury ultimately convicted him on four counts while clearing him on the remaining three.
The case followed a Metropolitan Police investigation launched after a September 2023 investigation by Channel 4’s “Dispatches” and The Times and The Sunday Times reported allegations of sexual misconduct against Brand. Several women later contacted police. Prosecutors said the women involved in the criminal trial did not know one another and came forward independently. Brand repeatedly denied nonconsensual sexual conduct after the allegations became public.
The prosecution told jurors that the women described a pattern in which Brand initially used charm, compliments or flirting before his behavior changed. Because many years had passed since the alleged offenses, prosecutors said some forms of evidence were limited and the case relied heavily on testimony from the women and other witnesses. The CPS said prosecutors focused on Brand’s conduct and the issue of consent rather than assumptions about how victims of sexual offenses should respond or how quickly they should report an assault.
The guilty verdicts covered three sexual assaults and one rape. The jury also found Brand not guilty of two other allegations of rape and an allegation of attempted indecent assault. Jurors had begun deliberating Tuesday after hearing weeks of testimony and arguments from prosecutors and the defense. The trial examined incidents said to have occurred at several locations in London during different stages of Brand’s career.
The convictions mark a major reversal for a performer who became one of Britain’s most recognizable entertainment figures. Brand rose through stand-up comedy and television presenting before hosting radio programs and appearing in Hollywood films. In later years, he shifted much of his work online, where he built a large following around political commentary, wellness, religion and criticism of mainstream institutions. His public profile changed sharply after the sexual misconduct allegations emerged in 2023.
The criminal case is not the only matter involving Brand that remains under review. London’s Metropolitan Police said its investigation is continuing into rape allegations made by two additional women. Files related to those allegations have been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, according to police. No decision on further prosecution has been announced, and those allegations have not been adjudicated. Brand has previously been interviewed under caution in connection with the continuing investigation.
Brand remained in custody Thursday following the verdicts. His next confirmed court proceeding is his sentencing at Southwark Crown Court on Monday, Nov. 9, when the judge is expected to determine the prison term resulting from the four convictions.
Author note: Last updated November 5, 2026.