Following the initial wave of sexual assault and misconduct allegations against Russell Brand, it has also come out that he was fired from Comedy Central’s Roast Battle for being a “sexual predator” while filming. He was booked to be a judge on the series for longer before getting dropped and only lasted the six-episode debut season in 2018. This would have been his final major U.K. TV series appearance.
Russell Brand Fired From Roast Battle After Katherine Ryan Called Him Out for Being a “Sexual Predator”
The series followed comedians roasting one another. Co-judge Katherine Ryan called out Russell Brand for his “sexual predator” behavior on set. The incidents were edited out when the episodes aired.
The original report comes from Deadline, which follows up after a report from The Times, Sunday Times, and Channel 4 that reported on his multiple cases of abuse, sexual assault, and rape. This behavior on TV is coming two days after the report that documented four women coming out to share their experiences of abuse from the comedian, one of whom was 16 when she had her encounter with him.
In the Deadline report, the actor was “furious” after Ryan called him out. It is unknown if other co-judges joined her in calling him out, but it resulted in his fury and a conversation with producers to protect him. The show was all about roasting one another, but with one judge not wanting to be roasted, it made the studio worried. Among other rumors, it led to Fulwell 73 Productions firing him.
Following his co-judge calling him out for sexual predator behavior, Russell Brand only had one other U.K. TV appearance in The Great Celebrity Bake Off. It did not end his work as this open secret about him did not prevent his other projects, including Death on the Nile, Minions: The Rise of Gru, Ballers, and more productions in film and TV.
The 48-year-old actor has since denied all allegations made against him.