Authorities arrested Michael Joseph Branham, 48, on Wednesday in Manhattan for allegedly threatening to bomb the "Saturday Night Live" studio, where actress Scarlett Johansson's husband, Colin Jost, works as a writer and co-host of "Weekend Update," according to the New York Post. Branham is a reported Johansson stalker.
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Court filings and law enforcement sources confirm the arrest stems from menacing text messages.
Branham, who sports a "Scarlett" tattoo with a heart on his torso, sent a chilling message to the messaging service of his online university, according to the criminal complaint. "THE NEXT TIME YOU HERE [sic] FROM ME I WILL BE ON CNN FOR EXPLODING A BOMB IN SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE AUDIENCE," the text read. An NBC Universal global security investigator reported the threat to Midtown North Precinct on Tuesday.
Charges and Court Proceedings
Prosecutors charged Branham with felony counts of falsely reporting an incident and making a threat of mass harm. During his Thursday night arraignment in Manhattan criminal court, Judge Janet McDonnell ordered him held on $100,000 cash or $300,000 bond bail. The prosecution linked the threat to Branham's "personal obsession" and behavior as a stalker with Johansson.
His public defender, Jamie Niskanen-Singer of Legal Aid, requested lower bail. She argued that Branham, previously scammed by imposters posing as Johansson online, might have been hacked or framed. "He has given out information. It's very possible here that there is someone setting him up," Niskanen-Singer told the court. She noted the sole evidence was a text message and emphasized Branham's lack of weapon-related history.
Judge McDonnell rejected the plea. "He threatened to bomb 'Saturday Night Live,' which is a violent bail-qualifying offense," she said, issuing protective orders for Johansson and Jost despite the defense's objections.
Stalker Vibes?
Johansson, 40, sought a restraining order against Branham last year, alleging over a year of harassment. Court filings from 2023 reveal he repeatedly appeared at her home in November, claiming on social media to be her fiancé and father of one of her children. A California court dismissed her request in April 2024 after her attorney failed to serve Branham, according to the Blast.
Branham's X account showcases his fixation. In November 2023, he tweeted, "Don't worry about anything #SCARLETTINGRIDJOHANSSON I still have not cheated on you," and professed his love. The father of two daughters, ages 18 and 5, also thanked her for supposedly buying him a car.
Johansson and Jost's Connection
Johansson married Jost, a veteran "SNL" writer since 2005, in October 2020 after three years of dating. The couple now faces this latest threat tied to Branham's apparent delusions, which authorities continue to investigate.
