An ex-Royal Ballet star known as the ‘bad boy’ of the industry has sparked backlash after he said convicted rapist Russell Brand was a ‘national treasure’.
Sergei Polunin, who at age 20 was the youngest-ever male principal dancer to join London‘s Royal Ballet in 2010, has pledged his ‘full support’ for the disgraced comedian, who was last week jailed for 10-and-a-half years.
The 36-year-old, who welcomed a daughter with his wife, Russian figure skater Elena Ilinykh, earlier this year said he had ‘the pleasure’ of watching the jailed TV star rehearse and perform live before the pair had ‘a conversation’.
Polunin shared a black and white photo of Brand sitting on a stool to his Instagram on Saturday alongside a gushing caption, in which he described the comic as ‘very polite, very clever and so ‘geniusly’ talented.
The post continued: ‘When people are at his level of fame woman just throw themselves at you. I saw it when I hangout with Mickey Rourke deferent [sic] woman every minute would try to sit on his lap.
‘When someone after having Threesome with Rockstar Russel brand wanted to have sex again and this time round didn’t like Anal sex that is not Prison sentence!!!
‘He is a father is Loving Husband and he is Super Talent and British Treasure. Friends who trying to distance themselves from him are Rats.’
The post quickly attracted criticism from Polunin’s 194,000 Instagram followers, with many vowing to ‘unfollow’ the award-winning ballet dancer.
Sergei Polunin, who at age 20 was the youngest-ever male principal dancer to join London’s Royal Ballet in 2010, has pledged his ‘full support’ for Russell Brand, who was last week jailed for 10-and-a-half years for rape and sexual assault (Polunin is pictured in 2019)
Polunin (pictured playing Grigori Rasputin at The London Palladium in 2019) described the disgraced comedian as a ‘national treasure’ and ‘very polite and very clever’
One wrote: ‘Your vibe attracts your tribe. What an enlightening insight. Unfollow.’
A second commented: ‘WTAF – talking about picking the wrong side of history.’
A third said: ‘Wow. So disappointing. I was mesmerised when I saw Dancer. Can’t be more let down by this post. What are you thinking? You have a daughter, right?’
Polunin first joined London’s Royal Ballet School when he was 13 years old in 2003, where he quickly rose through the ranks to principal dancer.
After leaving London in 2012 he became a principal dancer at both the Stanislavsky Music Theatre in Moscow and the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet.
In 2014, Polunin became a viral sensation after he shared a self-choreographed routine to Hozier’s hit song Take Me to Church.
Two years later, he released an acclaimed documentary about his life, Dancer, in which he expressed dissatisfaction with the Royal Ballet.
In 2019, the Paris Ballet Opera withdrew an invitation to Polunin to perform in Swan Lake over a series of homophobic and sexist comments he shared on social media.
Brand (pictured on the Jonathon Ross show in 2008) was jailed last Monday after being found guilty of rape and three counts of sexual assault
His post comes as Mia Fetter, 37, became the first of Brand’s accusers to waive her anonymity yesterday. She said she was groomed by Brand when she was 16 and he was 30
In a since-deleted post, Polunin wrote that gay men ‘need a good slap… Man (sic) are wolves, are lions. Man are the leaders of the family.’
He also took aim at overweight people, writing: ‘Let’s slap fat people when you see them. It will help them and encourage them to lose some fat. No respect for laziness!’
He later became a key supporter of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and raised funds to support Russian troops, giving the president his full support in the 2024 election.
In recognition of his contributions, Polunin was granted Russian citizenship and renounced his Ukrainian roots. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky officially stripped Polunin of his Ukrainian citizenship in October 2025.
But in 2024, Polunin announced he and his family were leaving Russia, with the turnaround said to be triggered by a series of sinister packages sent to his home.
The scooter bombing of senior Russian general Igor Kirillov by Ukrainian agents right in the heart of Moscow, some believe, heightened the dancer’s fears.
Polunin’s support for Brand comes as a woman who says she was groomed by the jailed comedian when she was 16 and he was 30 became the first of his accusers to waive her anonymity yesterday.
Mia Latter, 37, accused Brand of forcing her against the headboard of his bed and orally raping her after they met when she was a schoolgirl in 2006.
She said she was speaking out to campaign for a staggered age of consent that would outlaw relationships between adults and under-18s.
On Friday night, eight more women came forward and accused the 51-year-old of sexual abuse and predatory behaviour.
Brand now faces the prospect of a second trial, as detectives are assessing information from more than half a dozen new complainants, who came forward following his conviction earlier this week.
Police are also doing final work on files of evidence submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service in relation to claims from two further women, including an allegation that he raped a 16-year-old.
