Trigger warning: This article contains descriptions of sexual violence. With their divorce resurfacing after the allegations, many people are asking why Katy Perry and Russell Brand divorced.
Katy Perry was married to Russell Brand fourteen months later. They started dating in 2009 and became engaged four months later, when they had a traditional Hindu wedding in India. The marriage lasted 14 months, with Brand infamously ending the relationship through a text on New Year’s Eve. (The exchange was documented in Perry’s documentary Katy Perry: Part of Me.)
The British comedian, 48, has recently been accused of sexual assault by five women between 2006 and 2013, per The Times UK. The report, which was published following a joint investigation with The Times of London and the U.K. network Channel 4’s documentary team “Dispatches,” details claims of “rape, sexual assaults and emotional abuse” allegedly carried out by Brand. A 90-minute documentary on the allegations, titled Russell Brand: In Plain Sight aired on Channel 4 on September 16, 2023, at 9 p.m. GMT. “Five women, four of whom asked to remain anonymous, agreed to share their stories of serious sexual allegations in the program,” a rep for the show said, per Variety.
One woman alleged that Brand raped her against a wall at his home in Los Angeles. According to the Times, she was treated at a rape crisis center later that day and sent the comedian text messages telling him that she felt he had taken advantage of her. “When a girl say[s] NO it means no,” one alleged text read, to which Brand purportedly replied that he was “very sorry.”
A second woman claims that she was only 16 years old when she was assaulted by Brand, who was 31-years-old at the time. During their relationship, which lasted about three months, she said he referred to her as “the child” and asked her to read passages from Vladimir Nabokov’s novel, Lolita, which follows a predatory relationship between a middle-aged man and a 12-year-old girl. The woman also alleged that Brand once “forced his penis down her throat” until she choked, and had to punch him in the stomach to make him stop.
A third woman alleged that he sexually assaulted her when they worked together in Los Angeles. According to the woman, Brand threatened to take legal action against her if she spoke up about her experience. The fourth woman also claimed she was sexually assaulted by Brand, and described the actor as being both physically and emotionally abusive during their relationship.
Perry alluded to his behavior being the cause of their divorce. Read more to find out what happened.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, free and confidential help is available. Call the National Sexual Assault Hotline on 1-800-656-4673.
