Russell Bran: Fame is bewildering
Russell Brand finds being a celebrity "bewildering".
The actor, comedian and political activist rose to fame as an MTV presenter, the host of ‘Big Brother’s Big Mouth’ in 2004, and progressed on to star in the Hollywood comedy ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’ in 2008, but he claims the "luxury" that comes with his fame baffles him.
Speaking to NME magazine about his celebrity status, the 41-year-old said: "The problem with luxury is that all of your needs are fulfilled as soon as you have them, forcing you to realise that you cannot be fulfilled in that way.
"Being a celebrity is like that. It’s bewildering. All of that fame and glamour and being in newspapers and flown around in jets, you think it’s about you but that’s just the symptoms of someone else making money from you."
The dark-haired hunk – who has six-month-old daughter Mabel with his partner Laura Gallacher – believes he has become a "product", although he didn’t "realise" it because of his ego.
He explained: "You don’t realise that because your ego goes; ‘I am brilliant, I’ve always thought that’ Don’t all con tricks work on the basis that that’s what we want to believe? When I first went to Hollywood, they’d be going ‘you’re great! We love you! You’re f***ing wonderful!
"In the car after about five of these meetings I turned to my manager and went ‘It’s weird because everyone says people in Hollywood are manipulative liars but they’re actually really nice and honest.’
"When you interface with someone on the level of their ego there’s no limit to what you can get them to do. It’s not easy to realise when you’re in the midst of that because it’s too brilliant. I mean ‘brilliant’ in the sense of blinding bright lights."
