Russell Brand has been dropped by his agent Tavistock Wood amid accusations he raped and sexually abused four women at the height of his fame.
Tavistock Wood, backed by United Talent Agency-owned Curtis Brown, terminated all dealings with Brand this week after being presented with allegations of misconduct by The Times of London and Sunday Times newspapers. Deadline reported earlier on Saturday that Brand’s profile had vanished from Tavistock Wood’s website. Brand vehemently denies wrongdoing.
Tavistock Wood, which also represents Lily James and Dominic West, took action against Brand three years after being informed of allegations he had a relationship with a 16-year-old who accused him of sexual assault. Brand was 31 at the time.
The woman, who was given the pseudonym Alice by the Times, told the newspapers that she contacted Tavistock Wood co-founder Angharad Wood in 2020 and informed the agent of her experience. Alice said she wanted an apology, but she did not receive one.
Instead, the woman said she received an “aggressive” message from a lawyer representing Brand, who implied that she was seeking compensation for her alleged experience. Alice said the response was “insulting” and invalidated her experience.
In a statement, Tavistock Wood told Deadline: “Russell Brand categorically and vehemently denied the allegation made in 2020, but we now believe we were horribly misled by him. TW has terminated all professional ties to Brand.”
Deadline has contacted Brand’s publicist and attorney for comment. He preemptively refuted the allegations in the Times newspapers in a social media video, in which he said his relationships were “always consensual.” He added that the report, which has been supported by investigative work by Channel 4, was a “serious and concerted agenda” by the “mainstream media” to silence him.
Alice and a family member described Brand’s behavior as “grooming.” She was above the age of legal consent in the UK, but said Brand referred to her as “the child” and sent a car to her school to take her out of lessons and to his home.
Alice alleged that Brand sexually assaulted her by forcing his penis down her throat. She said she had to “punch him really hard in the stomach” to get him off.
She was one of four women who have alleged sexual assaults between 2006 and 2013, while he was a presenter for BBC Radio 2, Channel 4, and later a Hollywood actor.
