Courtney Stodden is acknowledging Jason Alexander’s public apology for participating in a disturbing 2012 comedy sketch, but she wants the “Seinfeld” actor to take his remorse one step further. Stodden was 17 when she appeared alongside the then-52-year-old Alexander in a Funny or Die video that involved him touching her breasts with a cellphone and making a sexual remark about what he would do once she turned 18. Now 31, Stodden says she was surprised to see an adult involved finally accept responsibility.
Alexander issued a statement on Wednesday expressing regret over his participation in the sketch, which he also co-wrote. “Looking back at the comedy sketch in which Ms. Stodden and I participated in 2012, I completely agree that it was inappropriate and I truly regret it,” Alexander told Variety. “But more importantly, I am deeply sorry for any harm or distress it has caused Ms. Stodden. I offer her my sincerest apologies.”
The sketch was a parody of “Dr. Phil” titled “The Donny Clay Show,” with Alexander playing a creepy television host. It was released through the Funny or Die website and YouTube channel in January 2012 but has since been removed.
During the video, Alexander rubbed his cellphone against Stodden’s chest while making jokes about getting a “signal” there. He also said that once she turned 18, he would take her behind the couch and “have his way with her.”
Stodden appeared alongside her then-husband, “The Green Mile” actor Doug Hutchison. The pair married in 2011 when Stodden was 16, and Hutchison was 51. They later divorced in 2020.
Courtney Stodden Was ‘Taken Aback’ By The Apology
Stodden told Variety she was pleasantly surprised that Alexander publicly accepted responsibility for the video. “I’m very taken aback that an adult was actually able to take accountability because I haven’t heard a lot of adults take accountability,” she explained. “When I first got word that he publicly apologized, I was grateful because I think that’s the first step in change.”
At the time the video was released, Stodden was already facing intense tabloid scrutiny and public ridicule surrounding her age-gap marriage. She has since spoken about feeling alone and exploited while the adults around her participated in turning her situation into entertainment.
Although she appreciates Alexander’s apology, Stodden believes he now has an opportunity to demonstrate his remorse through meaningful action. “At the same time, I think it would be even better if he put that into action, so I would urge Jason Alexander to support AB 1267 and support what’s happening in California or even donate to Unchained at Last,” she said.
‘Pretty Woman’ Made Stodden Reevaluate The Video
Stodden said she did not immediately comprehend how inappropriate the Funny or Die sketch had been. The realization came years later when she watched “Pretty Woman” for the first time. Alexander played Philip Stuckey in the film, a villain who assaults Julia Roberts’ character inside a hotel suite.
“I was in shock,” Stodden said of watching the scene. “It felt very close to home, and like he pulled from ‘Pretty Woman’ and thought it would be funny to recreate that with a child. I didn’t know he was going to be feeling me up on set.”
Stodden said she had trusted the adults surrounding her and did not know in advance what Alexander would do during filming. “I was very manipulated. Even if I didn’t look like a child, or what a ‘victim’ should look like, there was a child buried under there,” she explained. “I really just trusted the adults around me, and this is the effect of that.”
“Looking back on it, it’s really damaging,” Stodden continued. “This isn’t about revisiting my past but changing the experiences for minors going forward so they don’t have to experience what I had to experience.”
Courtney Stodden Is Fighting To End Child Marriage
Stodden has turned her personal experience into advocacy through her work with Unchained at Last, a nonprofit dedicated to ending child marriage in the United States. She is working with the organization to encourage California lawmakers to pass AB 1267, which would establish 18 as the legal minimum age for marriage in the state.
“It’s really frightening that there’s no minimum age for someone to get married in California,” Stodden said. “There are only two other states that allow this, Mississippi and New Mexico, and to think that California allows this is shocking.”
Stodden and other survivors affiliated with Unchained at Last plan to return to the California State Capitol next month to speak with legislators about ending child marriage.
Stodden Says Dr. Drew Never Apologized
Alexander is not the first celebrity to apologize to Stodden for how she was treated as a teenager. She previously received a public apology from Chrissy Teigen for cyberbullying her. However, Stodden said she has never received an apology from Dr. Drew Pinsky, who performed an ultrasound on her breasts during an appearance on “Lifechangers” when she was 16 to prove they were real.
“Dr. Drew actually doubled down and had his wife sarcastically invite me on his podcast to further exploit me,” Stodden alleged. “Getting an apology from an actor and not a doctor is kind of diabolical.”
In addition to her advocacy work, Stodden is finishing a memoir and may participate in a docuseries chronicling her efforts to end child marriage. “At the end of the day, I don’t want to be remembered for what happened to me,” she said. “I want to be remembered for helping make sure that this doesn’t happen again to another child.”
