Russell Brand's Alleged Bad Behavior Not Addressed Enough: Banijay

A Banijay investigation into explosive allegations against Russell Brand has found that during his time on Endemol-produced shows, informal complaints about the comedian's alleged inappropriate behavior were not “properly addressed”.

The investigation, conducted by the law firm Lewis Silkin, notes that while no formal complaints were filed against Brand during the production of “Big Brother's Big Mouth,” “Kings of Comedy” and “Big Brother's Celebrity Hijack” from 2004 to 2008, concerns were raised. ” have been raised by staff members regarding his behavior, including ” his asking riders to obtain the phone numbers of members of the public and female crew members who are feeling unwell comfortable or intimidated.

“Brand was known to be very flirtatious with many of the women he worked with or came into contact with. He often wore only his underwear in his dressing room and was sometimes naked in front of Endemol staff,” the report states. “There is evidence to suggest that such behavior was tolerated under the umbrella of ‘Russell being Russell’.”

The investigation commissioned by Banijay, which acquired Endemol, notes that there was “no contractual clause in Brand's contracts that prohibited him from having sexual relations with people he worked with” and “allegedly had sexual relations with members of the public and certain colleagues. » However, the report found no evidence that crew members were aware of the alleged incident with a 24-year-old female racer in which she allegedly claimed he had previously “flaunted his penis” while that she entered his dressing room and “insinuated that she could give it to him orally.” sex.”

The report mentions that two witnesses were aware of a rumor that Brand would “make crew members wait outside his dressing room while he masturbated”, but ultimately there was “insufficient information” to conclude that this occurred.

“At the time the programs were recorded, minimal (if any) training was provided to the crew (or anyone else) regarding workplace respect, code of conduct or ethical practices,” concludes The report. “There was also no clear escalation procedure that someone could follow if they wanted to report a concern. »

In September, Brand was accused of sexual assault and psychological abuse by five women, one of whom alleged rape, in an investigation published by the Sunday Times. Brand denied the claims, saying in a YouTube video posted after the report went live that he “absolutely refutes” the “litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks.”

A representative for Brand did not immediately respond to Varietyrequests comment on Banijay investigation.