Jason Alexander apologizes for 2012 sketch featuring then-minor Courtney Stodden
The Seinfeld actor said the 2012 comedy sketch with Courtney Stodden was inappropriate and expressed regret, while Stodden highlighted the incident while advocating for a California child-marriage ban.
Jason Alexander issued a statement apologizing for a 2012 Funny or Die sketch that featured Courtney Stodden, who was 17 at the time. He said he "completely agree[d] that it was inappropriate and I truly regret it" and added that he was "deeply sorry for any harm or distress it has caused Ms. Stodden".
Stodden resurfaced the sketch as part of her campaign for California Assembly Bill 1267, legislation that would prohibit child marriage. In an Instagram post she described the sketch, noting that Alexander "repeatedly rubbed his phone across my breasts" and made a joke about taking her "behind the couch" when she turned 18. She emphasized that, as a minor, she lacked the legal authority to consent and that the contracts were signed by adults.
The actress, who married a 51-year-old at age 16, said the incident underscores the need for laws that protect children from being used in adult entertainment. > "The older I get, the more impossible this is to understand," she wrote, adding that she hopes the public recognizes how adults can overlook a minor's vulnerability.