Russell Brand may have entered his interview with Piers Morgan hoping to gain support, but instead left facing widespread mockery.
The embattled comedian, who is currently facing multiple sexual offense charges, had attended one of his hearings carrying a Bible.
When confronted by Piers Morgan about it, Russell Brand struggled to find passages in the book, and his fumbling response drew sharp criticism from netizens.
On Friday’s episode of “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” embattled comedian Russell Brand appeared as a guest, an appearance that surprised many given his current legal troubles.
For much of the interview, those issues were discussed, with Brand also expressing remorse to viewers about his past promiscuous lifestyle.
However, at one point, the conversation took a turn when Piers Morgan confronted Brand about a stunt he pulled while attending his hearing in February.
“Can I go back to asking you a question about your Bible?” Morgan told Brand in the episode, per The Independent.
“Is that the one you took into court? What was your thinking of taking it into court, and you were seen looking at some passages – what were the relevant passages?”
While Russell Brand did respond with the name of a verse, he struggled to identify it in his bible, fumbling as he searched for it, much to the bewilderment of Morgan.
Ultimately, Russell Brand was unable to find the verse and instead quoted another one for his interviewer.
However, the damage from his earlier fumbling had already been done, as netizens took to the internet to mock the comedian.
“The way Piers Morgan just let Russel Brand twist in the wind for over a minute, trying to find the non-existent bible verse, then give this look, dead in the camera, was just brutal. I loved every second of it,” a user said, adding a snapshot from the interview.
Another individual, who described the moment as “embarrassing,” criticized Brand for his on-air fumble.
“You bring the bible to court as part of your defense in sexual assault cases, but can’t pull a single meaningful verse on the spot? Real conviction shows in knowledge and consistency, not just carrying a book for optics,” the netizen wrote.
“I don’t often have nice things to say about Piers, but Big ups to Piers for just letting it hang and not moving the interview along so we can all see Russel got his Bible for the fashion,” one more user commented.
Russell Brand Is Facing Multiple Sexual Allegations
Brand’s appearance on Morgan’s show comes after his February hearing, where he appeared in court with a Bible and began reading from it.
It was eventually confiscated by a court officer as proceedings continued. Whatever the intent behind the stunt, it did nothing to stop prosecutors from filing two new charges of rape and sexual assault against Brand.
The alleged rape reportedly occurred between February 7 and March 1, 2009, while the sexual assault is said to have taken place between August 31 and December 1, 2009.
The comedian also faces five other sexual offense charges from four different women, said to have occurred between 1999 and 2004, including allegations of rape, oral rape, and sexual assault.
He has repeatedly denied the claims, but has acknowledged living a promiscuous lifestyle during his Hollywood heyday.
Russell Brand’s Trial Will Start In October
At the time when Russell Brand was facing five charges, his trial was expected to begin in June at Southwark Crown Court.
However, the date was recently pushed back to October following concerns raised by Justice Bennathan.
The judge said that starting the trial as originally scheduled could leave the court without enough time to properly hear all the charges.
He also pointed to potential difficulties in securing jurors who could commit through the start of the summer holiday period, given the extended duration the additional charges would bring.
Russell Brand Recently Admitted To Sleeping With A 16-Year-Old
For now, Brand is next expected to appear in court on June 16 and 17 for a pre-trial hearing to address relevant matters.
If he is ultimately found guilty on all counts, he could face a significant sentence, with the maximum penalty for rape in the UK being life imprisonment.
The comedian recently raised eyebrows during an interview with Megyn Kelly, where he admitted to sleeping with a 16-year-old while he was 30 in the UK.
However, Brand insisted he did nothing wrong, emphasizing that the age of consent in the UK is 16.
Unsurprisingly, his remarks have led to deeper scrutiny of his past and the sexual assault allegations against him.
