“I used to be simply an fool,” Hugh Grant confessed throughout a candid chat on The Drew Barrymore Present. The now-60-year-old actor mirrored on the career-shaking incident that had him caught with intercourse employee Divine Brown in Los Angeles whereas relationship Elizabeth Hurley. The fallout? A worldwide media frenzy and a second Grant would fairly overlook.
Barrymore helped jog his reminiscence about their first interplay, revealing, “We didn’t meet in particular person—I reached out to you.” That sparked Grant’s recollection: “It was throughout the darkish days of my Divine Brown scandal… I opened a letter from you that was very supportive and good.” The letter, he mentioned, was a uncommon shiny spot throughout a time when he was besieged by the press on his farm in England.
In 1995, Grant was in Hollywood selling 9 Months when he determined to “take a stroll on the wild facet” alongside Sundown Strip. That night time ended along with his arrest for participating in lewd conduct with Brown, whose actual title is Estella Marie Thompson. On the time, Grant described the act as “utterly insane,” including, “I’ve damage folks I like and embarrassed folks I work with. For each issues, I’m extra sorry than I can ever presumably say.”
The scandal exploded. British tabloids scrambled for exclusives, with Information of the World paying Brown $100,000 for her facet of the story. She didn’t maintain again, claiming Grant mentioned, “I all the time needed to sleep with a Black girl. That’s my fantasy.” In the meantime, Grant confronted sentencing, receiving a $1,000 acceptable and necessary attendance at an AIDS training program.
Grant’s public apology on The Tonight Present with Jay Leno turned a defining second. “I’ve carried out an abominable factor,” he admitted, praising Hurley for her help. Regardless of her public silence for months, Hurley later revealed that the betrayal “felt like being shot.” The couple tried to reconcile, however the scandal left lasting scars on their relationship.
For Brown, the arrest introduced sudden fame. She traveled to the UK to advertise an grownup channel, cashing in on the controversy. Nonetheless, she confronted her authorized penalties, pleading no contest and receiving a 180-day jail sentence for violating probation.
Years later, Grant revisited the scandal with humor however unflinching honesty. On Marc Maron’s podcast, he blamed his poor judgment on seeing a tough reduce of 9 Months, calling his efficiency “atrocious.” Whereas Grant’s profession survived and even thrived—with hits like Notting Hill and Music and Lyrics—the scandal stays a cautionary story in regards to the pitfalls of fame.
Barrymore’s kindness throughout Grant’s darkest days left an impression. “You’ll all the time have a spot in my coronary heart,” he informed her. For an actor who’s perfected the artwork of appeal on-screen, this uncommon second of vulnerability proved why audiences—and Hollywood—proceed to root for Hugh Grant.
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