New College rescheduling Russell Brand event but plans to host comedian despite ongoing rape investigation

Russell Brand at RNC. Image via AP.

Update: New College announced it will postpone an event with comedian Russell Brand until an undisclosed date.

“At New College, we remain committed to creating spaces for honest and often challenging conversations. Free speech is not a performance—it’s a principle. While we continue to support the intention behind this event, we also recognize that timing and context matter. We look forward to welcoming Mr. Brand to campus at a future date under conditions that allow for thoughtful and topical engagement from both the public and our academic community.”

Details have not been announced on a new date.

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New College of Florida continues promoting an upcoming speaking event with comedian Russell Brand. That’s despite police in the United Kingdom bringing rape charges against the controversial celebrity in his home country.

The Florida public university already had Brand slated as a speaker as part of its Socratic Stage Dialogue Series before U.K. police recently announced criminal charges against the comedian, including rape and sexual assault.

The Sarasota school said it would continue with the Saturday event undeterred by the controversy.

“In a time when public pressure often seeks to silence rather than engage, New College of Florida is reaffirming its role in creating space for open inquiry — not eliminating it. After thoughtful consideration, we have decided to move forward with Russell Brand’s scheduled appearance as part of a broader conversation on society, culture, and free speech,” said Alexandra Nicole Islas, Public Policy Events Director.

“This is a reflection of our commitment to civil discourse and the belief that even challenging conversations deserve room in the public square. While the justice system independently addresses other matters, our responsibility is to ensure a space where ideas — especially those that invite dialogue, such as the topic of cancel culture and free speech — can be explored with respect, critical thought, and intellectual integrity.”

Brand has maintained his innocence.

New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran will moderate the event, which will be titled “Thinking without Permission: A Conversation with Russell Brand on Free Speech, Censorship, and Cultural Power.”

The Sarasota Film Festival, a local cinema organization, is not involved in the event formally. But notably, the festival this year does intend to screen movies at New College’s campus for the first time, including the documentaries “Culture War,” about the recent leadership and culture changes at the school, and “The Librarians,” about librarians find themselves on the front lines of battles against book bans.

Sarasota Film Festival Board Chair Mark Famiglio acknowledged a different level of scrutiny around the Brand event than expected.

“It’s about free speech, authentic free speech,” he said. “Maybe we will get the guy to talk about some of these things. Maybe we try and get Hunter Biden on there with him. They are both drug addicts and sex addicts, while one has an actual history of the media claiming he didn’t do anything. But what do we know? If we say someone is an addict, does that mean we put them in a trash can?”

Famiglio stressed that Brand has not been found guilty of anything but that nobody involved in the event condones the behavior of which Brand is accused.

“What I can say is I like his more formalized word salad that I have seen in some other discussions,” Famiglio said. “He has a brilliance, but none of that speaks to his lifestyle or mistakes he may or may not have made, or illegalities he may or may not have committed.”

Multiple sources said organizers had initially planned the event at the Sarasota Opera House, a larger Downtown Sarasota venue for the sold-out event. Ultimately, the decision was made to host Brand at the Mildred Sainer Pavilion on campus. The event will be streamed on YouTube, X, and Rumble.