Russell Brand’s past relationship with Katy Perry has come under renewed scrutiny following the comedian’s guilty verdict in a UK trial involving multiple women.
An old red-carpet interaction between the former couple has resurfaced, with viewers drawing attention to a peculiar detail: an “obey” tag he used when the pop star disagreed with him.
The clip has sparked unsettling reactions, with some wondering what their marriage might have been like away from the cameras.
“Proof that even wealthy, successful, seemingly confident women like her can fall victim to men like him,” one viewer commented.
Russell Brand’s past exchange with Katy Perry took on a new meaning after his guilty verdict
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Six women had accused Brand of various offenses, leading to his trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court between October 14 and November 3.
After two days of deliberations over the seven charges brought against him, a 12-person jury convicted him of one count of forced intimacy and three counts of indecent conduct.
Since the verdict, netizens have been revisiting the comedian’s media appearances over the years, looking for apparent red flags.
One such instance came from a 2010 Vanity Fair post-Oscars party.
The former couple was approached by GMTV for a brief interview about the Academy Awards ceremony in 2010.
When Brand was asked what he thought of the “whole shebang,” he began responding, “I thought it was…,” but was interrupted by the Roar hitmaker.
“You didn’t watch it,” she called him out.
After a few more seconds of back-and-forth, Brand proceeded to flash a tag bearing the word “Obey” from a clothing line created by street artist Shepard Fairey.
Social media users interpreted the gesture as Brand asserting control over the singer in public.
One viewer wrote, “Mind you, he used to use an ‘obey’ tag on Katy Perry every time she wasn’t agreeing with him. Imagine the horrors he did behind closed doors.”
Another person expressed confusion over what Perry “saw in him,” while a third remarked that she had “dodged a nuke when she divorced him.”
The resurfaced interaction, meanwhile, is not the only reason the singer’s name has reentered discussions surrounding her former husband.
Katy Perry may have been present during one of Russell Brand’s alleged attacks
According to a November 5 report by the Daily Mail, Brand’s defense attorney, Ian Winter, raised the possibility that a witness had been present in the room where he allegedly put his head in a woman’s lap.
This might have possibly included “the defendant’s future wife, Ms Katy Perry,” he told the court.
However, Scotland Yard reportedly never approached the singer for a statement about the incident.
Perry’s name was also removed from the proceedings following submissions by the comedian’s legal team, with prosecutor Riel Karmy Jones acknowledging that references to their relationship warranted discretion.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the prosecution recognizes that matters post 2009 involving his relationship with Katy Perry may be sensitive, as may his previous faiths, and we are content to remove these,” she said.
Brand, for those unfamiliar, began incorporating Eastern philosophy, Hare Krishna practices, and Hindu spirituality into his life in the late 2000s.
His marriage to Perry in October 2010 also followed Hindu traditions and took place at a luxury resort in Rajasthan, India.
Adding to the renewed scrutiny of their past relationship is a suggestive moniker the singer reportedly used for her former husband.
Piers Morgan revealed the unsettling nickname Perry had for Brand in a column
In a 2023 column for The Sun, British journalist Piers Morgan recalled an interaction he had with Perry in 2013, just months after her July 2012 separation from Brand.
The exchange took place when Morgan approached the singer about her marriage lasting only 14 months, but she admitted she was not prepared to discuss the matter publicly.
“Because you’ll get the truth out of me and I’m just not ready to tell you the truth! In fact, I’m not sure I’m ready to admit the truth to myself,” she reportedly told him.
She then spoke about her attraction to British men before adding, “I love Brits… well, not all of them. Not Rasputin, obviously.”
Dimitrios Kambouris/VF13/WireImage
The nickname referred to Grigori Rasputin, the controversial Russian mystic known for his alleged insatiable appetite for intimacy.
Morgan later claimed that Brand appeared delighted when he heard about the comparison, even discussing Rasputin’s reputation for manipulating people and his relationships with women.
“I like Rasputin… he was all right, wasn’t he… a mad monk with magical, mythical powers having it off with everyone, drinking and getting into fights,” he reportedly said.
Brand, however, maintained during his trial that all his intimate encounters with women had been consensual.
Brand described consent as essential to physical relationships while testifying in court
One of the most significant moments during the weeks-long proceedings in Brand’s case came when he decided to testify in his own defense.
The comedian acknowledged remembering encounters with some of the women while saying he had no recollection of others.
Although he admitted that he had “misused” his fame “very, very selfishly,” he maintained that none of his meetings with women resulted in anything forced.
Brand also told the court that he considered consent important in any encounter, describing it as “fundamental” and “necessary.”
According to Rolling Stone, Brand explained that he had chosen to testify after being unable to find a “single person” willing to appear on his behalf.
However, his defense arguments were not sufficient to persuade the jury to set him free.
Brand was remanded into custody following the verdict, with Judge Mr. Justice Bennathan indicating that the conviction would inevitably result in a “significant custodial term.”
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Monday, November 9.
“The general public had totally forgotten she was marred to this mess of a man,” a netizen said about Katy Perry
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