Courtney Stodden has thanked Seinfeld star Jason Alexander for the donation he made to the nonprofit of her choice, as an apology for a raunchy sketch they co- when he was 52 years old and she was 17.
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Courtney Stodden Responds to Jason Alexanders Apology
Courtney Stodden has thanked Seinfeld star Jason Alexander for the donation he made to the nonprofit of her choice, as an apology for a raunchy sketch they co-s...
In the Funny or Die video, which was released in 2012, Alexander rubbed his phone against the then-underage teen's breast as she posed in a bikini.
The clip was filmed at a time when she was the target of tabloid scrutiny and public shaming due to her age-gap marriage to The Green Mile actor Doug Hutchison, a union that was made official when she was 16 and he was 50.
Stodden, now 31, posted to Instagram this Monday slamming Alexander for the sketch, and the Seinfeld star
She suggested he put his remorse 'into action' by expressing 'support' for AB 1267 - a proposed law that would close the loophole whereby minors can get married if their parents consent - or donating to its co-sponsor Unchained at Last.
He gave $15,000 to Unchained at Last, a nonprofit that bills itself as 'dedicated to ending forced and child marriage in the United States through direct services and systems change,' and Stodden has now praised him for the 'beautiful gift.'
The Daily Mail has contacted Unchained at Last and representatives for Alexander and Stodden for comment.
Courtney Stodden has thanked Seinfeld star Jason Alexander for the donation he made to the nonprofit of her choice; Alexander pictured in 2023
Stodden, now 31, posted to Instagram this Monday slamming Alexander for the sketch, and the Seinfeld star responded with a groveling apology statement
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'I was grateful to learn Jason Alexander sent a beautiful gift to Unchained at Last. I want to sincerely thank him for choosing to turn words into action,' she wrote on her Instagram page on Friday. 'Accountability isn’t about public punishment—it’s about taking meaningful steps that can help create change.'
After Alexander issued his initial apology, Stodden remarked Wednesday that he ought to support AB 1267 or donate to the charity, in Variety.
In an Instagram post on Monday, Stodden shared a screenshot from the sketch and described how the older she gets, the less she doesn't understand how a minor could have been exposed to that kind of sexualization
Stodden said she only realized how inappropriate the sketch was when she watched Pretty Woman for the first time and saw Alexander's villainous on-screen character Philip Stuckey, pictured in the 1990 film with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere
At the time the Funny or Die segment was made, Stodden was the target of tabloid scrutiny and public shaming due to her marriage to The Green Mile actor Doug Hutchison when she was 16 and he was 50. Above, the former couple are seen out in 2012
After Stodden's post went viral, Alexander, who not only starred in but also co-wrote the Funny Or Die sketch, expressed his 'regret' over the 'inappropriate' segment.
'Looking back at the comedy sketch in which Ms. Stodden and I participated in 2012, I completely agree that it was inappropriate and I truly regret it,' the Seinfeld alum said in a statement to The Daily Mail on Tuesday.
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'But more importantly, I am deeply sorry for any harm or distress it has caused Ms. Stodden. I offer her my sincerest apologies.'
The former teen bride and media personality claimed that the money she made for appearing in the skit went to her then-husband Hutchison.
'I was a minor,' she said. 'I didn't have the legal power to decide whether I wanted to participate. The contracts were signed by adults.'
She went on: 'Children deserve laws that protect them. They shouldn't have to become adults before realizing the law should have protected them all along.'
When contacted by the Daily Mail on Tuesday, Stodden's representative declared that the star 'has pretty much said all she can about this situation already.'
The rep added: 'She did want to mention that she wasn't made aware of what the scene included before arriving. She was informed on set what her role was going to be. She was only told to bring a swimsuit.'
'Children deserve laws that protect them,' Stodden, now 31, said. 'They shouldn't have to become adults before realizing the law should have protected them all along.' Pictured in 2025
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Stodden's rep then acknowledged Alexander's apology before taking aim at another TV star who was in Stodden's orbit during her headline-making years as a teen bride.
'The biggest surprise isn't Jason Alexander's apology. It's that an actor has shown more accountability than Dr Drew who inserted himself into my story. A child should have been protected.'
Stodden, in an Instagram post last month, also alluded to a televised incident involving Dr Drew Pinsky.
'Dr. Drew had me on his show when I was 16 and had me undergo an ultrasound to see if my breasts were real or if I was lying about my breasts. I was an underage girl,' Stodden said in her post.
'I was a minor trapped in a situation that I wasn't able to get out of legally. I had no rights at the time. The money he paid me to be on the show went straight to my abuser.'
According to US Weekly, Stodden subsequently posted a screenshot from Dr Drew's spouse Susan Pinsky that read: 'I would love to talk to her on Ask Drew. If @courtneystodden wants to duke it out with Dr. Drew.'
The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Hutchison and Pinsky for further comment on the story but has yet to hear back.
