Russell Brand has defended Bruce Jenner, speaking out against the “bullying” of the star in the US media.
On his YouTube show The Trews{
The US tabloid claimed that Jenner, 65, would be coming out as transgender in LGBTQ-interest publication The Advocate later this year, however the magazine has vehemently denied the claims and described InTouch’s cover as "distressing" and a "total fabrication".
Brand, 39, said of the incident: "For some sections of the media, transphobia seems to be the most recent and encouraged form of prejudice, now that racism and homophobia are not tolerated.
"We can't be homophobic anymore… can't be racist anymore… but still can be transphobic though, can we?'"
He added: "Doesn't this seem like when you see Blade Runner, or some dystopian thing – when you see a bit of telly in a film from the future, and everything's a bit 'Hello, we're evil now!'. It's such a celebration of the worst aspects of human values."
"This is bullying," he said. "Stop. Bruce Jenner is a human being."
At the end of the video, Russell encourages viewers to watch Jeffrey Tambor’s Golden Globe acceptance speech for his role in Transparent and says that he does believe society is moving forward in its attitude towards the trans community.
Bruce is yet to speak out about the InTouch cover but his former wife Kris Jenner, 59, is said to be very upset, with a source telling TMZ: “She is outraged…It’s just mean to do whether or not it's true.”
A source for the Kardashian matriarch added: “She has contempt for the magazine jumping to conclusions and then altering the image to fit its story.”
*by Laura Donaldson. Follow Laura on Twitter *@lauradonaldson_