NEWSRussell Brand Got Handsy With Katharine McPhee During 2013 'Tonight Show' Interview: See the Cringe-Worthy Moment
Awkward moments involving Russell Brand are resurfacing in the wake of the sexual assault accusations against him.
In one incident from a 2013 episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the comedian refused to move his seat so that Katharine McPhee could sit down, resulting in the two exchanging flirty banter.
As the singer began to sit down on the couch instead of the chair closest to Fallon, Brand reached out with both of his hands to hold the singer's. While Fallon instructed Brand, 48, to move over, McPhee got up and sat on the British star's lap as he declared, "Katharine is welcome to sit here!"
He then wrapped both his arms around the American Idol alum, 39, as Fallon warned Brand not to make an excuse for the bit by saying it "was for the queen."
Brand then shouted "for the queen!" and gripped both sides of McPhee's waist as she got up with a shocked look on her face, then adjusting her skirt.
Russell Brand was recently accused of sexual assault by four women.
Brand eventually got up and moved over, telling the mom-of-one, "you're beautiful."
"Should I just sit here?" he asked, pointing to the couch. "I'll just be here with my sexual charisma."
The crowd laughed before the crooner admitted, "Oh my gosh. This is all too much for just the first 30 seconds."
Katharine McPhee brushed off her incident with Brand as 'harmless.'
While some viewers thought the clip was uncomfortable, especially in the wake of the allegations against the Get Him to the Greek star, McPhee recently told a news outlet, "This specific incident was over 10 years ago and it was harmless."
As OK! reported, over the weekend, four women accused Brand of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse, with the incidents occurring between 2006 and 2013. One of the alleged victims said she was only 16 at the time.
He put out a statement to deny their claims.
- Kristen Bell Warned Costar Russell Brand Not to Try and Hookup With Her While Filming 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall'
- Russell Brand Exposed Himself to a Woman in Workplace Bathroom and Joked About It on His Radio Show Minutes Later
- Russell Brand 'Absolutely Refutes' Any 'Criminal' Attack Allegations From His 'Promiscuous' Past
Powered by RedCircle
"I've received two extremely disturbing letters, or a letter and an email, one from a mainstream media TV company, one from a newspaper, listing a litany of extremely egregious and aggressive attacks," he said in a social media video. "But amidst this litany of astonishing, rather baroque attacks, are some very serious allegations that I absolutely refute."
Brand has denied the allegations against him.
"These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies. And as I've written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous. Now during that time of promiscuity, the relationships I had were absolutely, always consensual," the actor clarified.
Never miss a story — sign up for the OK! newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what OK! has to offer. It’s gossip too good to wait for!
"Now, I don't want to get into this any further, because of the serious nature of the allegations, but I feel like I'm being attacked and plainly they are working very closely together," he concluded. "We are obviously going to look into this matter because it's very, very, serious. In the meantime, I want you to stay close, stay awake, but more important than any of that, if you can, please stay free."
Daily Mail obtained McPhee's "harmless" statement.
