Megyn Kelly, Elon Musk and Neil Oliver have publicly shown support for Russell Brand after he was convicted of rape and sexual assault.
The comedian has begun a 10-and-a-half-year sentence after being found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. Despite the verdict, a small group of high-profile figures have continued to speak positively about him, with one saying she did not believe he was guilty.
Megyn Kelly questions the verdict
Megyn Kelly, who previously spoke out about sexual harassment and misconduct at Fox News and called the Me Too movement a "watershed moment in history", said on an episode of The Megyn Kelly Show on the day the guilty verdicts came through: "I had a very difficult time believing that he was capable of rape, as I do right now. I don't believe these charges. I'm going to be honest. I don't."
She added: "I believe he dearly loves his wife Laura, his children, and, as I said, I think he has found God and he's asked for forgiveness from a lifestyle that he completely rejects now." She described him as an "utterly charming guy" and called his sentence an "outrage" that was part of a "political witch hunt", claiming Brand was targeted for being a "conservative stalwart".
Kelly, who had previously encouraged women to come forward about sexual assault, telling women at a Time Person of the Year panel that "we are all there with you", dismissed the victims' accounts as: "Grabbing boobs, kissing, sniffing, and having that kind of sex with a woman who consented to vaginal sex with him seconds beforehand, and also had clearly been joking with him."
Elon Musk and Neil Oliver weigh in
Elon Musk showed support for Brand by responding to a fan's comment on X. The fan wrote: "So using the Russell Brand case as precedent, any woman can wait 20+ years and then go to police and say the sex she had on a particular night all those years ago wasn't consensual so the guy is then guilty. We're living in the twilight zone."
Musk agreed that it was a "crazy legal standard" and remarked that the 10-year sentence was, compared to another sentence shared by a different user, "unjust".
GB News host Neil Oliver came under fire after he re-shared a tweet from 2025. In the post, he was seen with Brand and wrote that the comedian was his "friend". When resharing it, the day after the verdict was handed down, Oliver wrote: "Still is."
Reaction and sentence details
Other X users responded with disgust. One said: "Still is. And a jury just found him guilty of rape and sexual assault."
Brand was found guilty of multiple counts of sexual assault and one of rape. He was told he would be on the sex offenders register for life and must serve at least seven years of his sentence before being considered for release.
If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999.
