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| Comedian turned actor Russell Brand |
If, four or five years ago, you had told me that Russell Brand would become a household name in the U.S.A. for acting, of all things, I would not have believed you. Oh, times have changed.
Russell Brand was born in 1975, an only child. His parents separated when he was 6 months old. And so began the crazy, roller coaster ride that is Russell Brand's life.
Brand was raised only by his mother, an upbringing that he branded lonely and isolated. Aged 7, he was sexually abused by a teacher. Aged 8, his mother contracted cancer. Aged 14, he suffered through bulimia. At the age of 16, Brand made the decision to leave home. Thus began his experiences with illegal drugs. He took anything and everything that he could get his hands on; cannabis, cocaine, crack, heroin, LSD, ecstasy- you name it, you're pretty much guaranteed Brand had indulged in it.
Despite leaving home and having drug problems, his education did not cease to exist after this time. He attended Grays School Media Arts College and the Drama Centre London. He was expelled from the latter.
Upon leaving school, Brand got his start in stand-up comedy and quickly developed his own comedy style. Always controversial, always funny (depending on what you like), Brand wasn't for everybody. Get them talking, he thought. He certainly got himself noticed. His successful comedy career led to higher-profile gigs, like hosting the NME awards in 2006 and hosting Big Brother U.K.'s sister show, Big Brother's Big Mouth. Producers must have thought that Brand was perfect for that show. After all, nobody had a bigger gob, or a louder opinion than Russell Brand, who went from a former sex and drug addict and recovering alcoholic to stand up comedian. He had a lot of life experience to draw on.
In October 2008, Brand received negative media coverage for what has become known as 'Sachsgate'. While doing duties on his B.B.C. Radio 2 programme, 'The Russell Brand Show', he and English television presenter Jonathan Ross indulged in a series of prank phone calls to actor Andrew Sachs, in which Brand made offensive comments regarding Sachs' granddaughter. Thousands of complaints were filed to Ofcom, the U.K.'s national regulator. Both Brand and Ross were suspended by the B.B.C. and the B.B.C. was fined £150,000 to Ofcom. Brand did succeed in one way, though; he got young people's attention through Facebook. A group was created, consisting predominately of youngsters, defending him in the debacle, the demographic that he effectively works for. Ask any young fan of Brand's why they like him, and his out-spoken nature and non-conformist attitude is sure to come high on that list.
Brand's first major film was 'St. Trinians', a remake of the British classic film about an all-girls boarding school. But Brand became familiar to mainstream American audiences first in 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall', which was released in 2008. Brand played Aldous Snow in a key supporting role. He played a drugged-up, ex crazy rock star who romances Kristen Bell. Brand's portrayal was highly praised and the film itself was well-received by audiences and critics alike. It earned $105 million at the box office, and an 85% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
2010 brought the release of Forgetting's sequel, 'Get Him to The Greek'. Very little was similar to the first film (Jonah Hill, who had a supporting role in the first film, portrayed a different character entirely in the second film). Executives clearly had belief in Brand to give him such a high-profile role for the sequel. Get Him was not as successful as its predecessor, but nearly: It raked in $91.3 million at the box office and a 73% RT rating.
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| Russell Brand (right) with wife Katy Perry |
But the true test of Brand's star power is yet to come. 'Hop', an animated feature in which Brand voices the main protagonist, E.B. the Rabbit, recently opened at No.1 in both the U.S. and the U.K.'s box office, with $11.4 million in the former and £1.3 million in the latter. It held onto the top spot in the U.S., but has received mostly negative reviews.
Brand's other new film is 'Arthur', a remake of the 1981 film starring Dudley Moore, in which Brand plays the title character. It opened at No.3 in the U.S. box office, with $12.2 million that week. 'Arthur' is a big step for Brand. In 'Get Him', Brand was second to Jonah Hill, despite the fact that Hills' character was unknown to audiences. In 'Arthur', Brand receives top star billing opposite American actress Jennifer Garner and Oscar winner Helen Mirren. The film, which is yet to be released in the U.K. , has received mostly negative reviews. But, on the bright side, influential American film critics Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper gave the film positive reviews.
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| Dame Helen Mirren with Russell Brand in 'Arthur' |
It is too soon to tell whether Brand can make his Hollywood success last, but one thing is for sure: He certainly has huge popularity with the American public, which should surely bring him a long way.
This Essex boy has had his Hollywood topping highs, he has had his sex and drugs induced lows. But one thing is for sure, Russell Brand is grabbing headlines and riding high. High up on that roller coaster of his, that could result in a dizzingly high or a crashingly low future.
