Nicole Scherzinger is being condemned for replying to a Russell Brand post about Trump’s US election win.
Many celebrities have been sharing their stunned reactions to Donald Trump becoming the new president – and only the second person to earn a second term in non-consecutive years.
While some stars kept quiet about their voting choices, others, including Jennifer Aniston, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Harrison Ford, voted for Kamala Harris. Trump’s contingent of famous fans includes Piers Morgan, Elon Musk, Joe Rogan and Brand.
On Thursday (7 November), Scherzinger responded to a photo Brand posted on Instagram that saw him celebrating Trump’s victory by holding up a red cap emblazoned with the words, “Make Jesus First Again.”
The Olivier Award-winning and Tony-nominated star of Broadway play Sunset Boulevard wrote: “Where can I get this hat!?”
The comment, which has now been deleted, has led many to believe the star has revealed herself to be a Trump fan due to the hat’s similarities with Trump’s MAGA hats that feature his slogan: “Make American Great Again.”
Scherzinger has been criticised for the reply to Brand, who was the subject of a Channel 4 Dispatched documentary that saw four women accuse him of being a rapist and a sexual and emotional abuser.
“Nicole Scherzinger was enjoying a gorgeous gorgeous comeback/people started to take her seriously for the first time in her entire career. She tossed it to comment on a Russell Brand post??” one person wrote.
Another added: “Nicole Scherzinger nuking her public image at its most ascendant in years for a comment on a Russell f***ing Brand Instagram post is wild,” with one more stating on X/Twitter: “My question is why is Nicole Scherzinger even following and interacting with Russell Brand in the first place.”
In the wake of the controversy, a post showing Scherzinger liking a post by Robert F Kennedy Jr has been circulated online. It read: “Yes, Russell Brand, Tucker Carlson, I will restore free speech, end the forever wars and protect children's health once we get Donald Trump back in the White House.”
On the campaign trail, Trump said he would let the former independent presidential candidate oversee health, food and medicines government sectors if he became president – despite Kennedy Jr’s much-derided obsession with debunked conspiracies.
Scherzinger has since responded to the furore, apologising “for the hurt caused”. She appeared to deny voting for Trump, stating: “When I commented on these posts, I made the mistake of not realising that they could be easily interpreted as being politically related and I apologisee to anyone who understandably reached that conclusion.
“Many presumptions are being drawn, which do not reflect who I am, what I stand for, or who I voted for.”
British prosecutors said earlier this month they have been given a file of evidence from police about alleged sexual offences by Brand and are considering whether to charge him
Brand, who also has a history of pushing unfounded conspiracy theories, has strongly denied all accusations against him, and told former Fox News host Carlson in a YouTube interview that the claims were “very, very hurtful”.
Less than a year after the allegations surfaced against him, the comedian was baptised, which he said was an “opportunity to leave the past behind”.
