[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Russell Brand is fessing up to his sexual “exploitation” of a minor.
The disgraced-comedian-turned-conservative-conspiracy-theorist appeared on Wednesday’s episode of The Megyn Kelly Show, where he admitted to a past sexual transgression. While speaking about some of the recent controversy surrounding the Get Him to the Greek actor, Megyn revealed she was “mad” at him after first learning of the sexual assault allegation against him, particularly involving a 16-year-old girl. However, she ultimately felt “open-mindedness” to the idea that he was being “attacked by people for reasons having nothing to do with actual facts” because of his “right-leaning stance on certain issues.” Now, obviously that part has us scratching our head because even if that were the case, that doesn’t erase the allegations coming from the women.
But it didn’t take long for Russell to respond with a cold, hard truth: he DID have sex with a 16-year-old! He confessed:
“The plain fact of it is, in Europe and in the United Kingdom, where I’m from, the age of consent is 16. And I did sleep with a 16-year-old when I was 30.”
EW. Legal age of consent or not, that’s a bad judgment call! He says he understands that now, as he went on to admit:
“But when I was 30, I was a very different person. I was a lot younger, and I was an immature 30-year-old.”
Still, pretty disturbing! Being an “immature” 30-year-old is NOT an excuse to go after teenagers when you’re a grown man! Again, he was a grown ass adult with a fully developed brain! “Immature” at 30 is NOT the same “immature” at 16. That’s the REAL “plain fact.” The now-50-year-old went on to acknowledge how “exploitative” using fame and status to attract sexual partners is:
“Consensual sex, actually, with a variety of people when there is a strong power differential, because there is when you’re a famous man that has the ability to attract women that I had at that time, I think involves exploitation. I think it is exploitative. I recognize that my sexual conduct in the past was selfish and I did not apply enough consideration, barely any, I suppose, really, to how that sex was affecting other people.”
Well, it’s obviously good he realizes that now, but the fact of the matter is he had the wherewithal to come to that realization 20 years ago, but didn’t. Or worse, ignored it. He continued:
“While I was transgressing lines of being a person that was sleeping with people because I had availability to not only, by the way, waitresses, and strippers, and fans, but powerful, professional women … I was only really thinking of myself.”
He argued “the age of consent is an important thing, the ability to consent is an important thing … and what fame gave me, and why my addiction fueled, was opportunity for endless consent, which led me to be hedonist, and a fool, and an exploiter of women. And that is wrong. And that is something that needs to be redeemed, and addressed, and atoned for.”
The Forgetting Sarah Marshall actor noted he was hesitant to say too much about whether or not he’s “guilty” because of “contempt of court.”
“I can’t say anything publicly that might in any way influence a potential jury.”
As we’ve been following, Russell was officially charged with rape, indecent assault, and sexual assault against two women stemming from incidents between 1999 and 2005 in December. The charges followed a slew of claims and investigations into various alleged instances of sexual misconduct.
What are YOUR thoughts, Perezcious readers?
If you have sincere cause to suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org
[Images via MEGA/WENN]
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