Russell Brand: YouTube Suspends Monetization on Comedian’s Channel Amid Assault Allegations

YouTube has suspended monetization on Russell Brand’s channel after the comedian was accused of rape and sexual assault.

“If a creator’s off-platform behavior harms our users, employees or ecosystem, we take action,” a YouTube spokesperson told U.K. media outlets on Tuesday. The company added that Brand had violated YouTube’s “Creator Responsibility policy.”

The move comes as four women variously accused Brand of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse between 2006 and 2013 as part of a joint investigation by The Times, The Sunday Times and Channel 4 Dispatches published on Sunday. Brand has denied the allegations.

Brand’s YouTube channel has 6.6 million subscribers. The British comedian and actor has in recent years focused his efforts on becoming a social media personality and wellness guru, using his various platforms to dabble in everything from conspiracy theories, anti-vax propaganda, veganism and politics.

In September 2022, the Get Him to the Greek star pledged to move over to rival video platform Rumble, after YouTube gave Brand a warning for posting misinformation about COVID-19.

On Monday, London’s Met Police said it had received a report of an alleged sexual assault relating to the recently reported allegations made against Brand. “We are aware of reporting by The Sunday Times and Channel 4’s Dispatches about allegations of sexual offenses,” a spokesperson for the Met Police said in a statement published by The Guardian.

The Met Police statement continued, “On Sunday 17 September, the Met received a report of a sexual assault which was alleged to have taken place in Soho in central London in 2003. Officers are in contact with the woman and will be providing her with support.”

Separately, Channel 4, the BBC and production giant Banijay all announced over the weekend that they have launched internal probes into Brand’s time working for them.

In the wake of the allegations, Brand’s live stand-up shows in the U.K. have been postponed. The comedian’s publisher Bluebird, an imprint of U.K. book giant Pan Macmillan, has said it will pause all future publishing with Brand.