Celebrities

Unflattering courtroom sketch of Tom Brady in Deflategate hearing goes viral

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deflated football

Image from Shutterstock.

At a federal court hearing on Wednesday in a case challenging Deflategate penalties imposed by the National Football League, it wasn’t the legal issues that ignited public interest.

It was a sketch artist’s unflattering portrayal of New England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady, seated amidst the Manhattan courtroom spectators.

Featuring spiked grayish hair and sharply angled eyebrows and cheekbones, the image bore little resemblance to the “downright dreamy” Brady, reported the Los Angeles Times (sub. req.).

The sketch went viral on social media, where commenters superimposed Brady’s face on the tortured individual at the center of Edvard Munch’s iconic The Scream and the extra-terrestrial in the flying bicycle scene from the movie E.T.

Contacted by VICE Sports, courtroom artist Jane Rosenberg offered an apology to convey to Brady: “He’s a very good-looking guy, and if I didn’t make him look good enough, I’ll try harder next time.”

However, in an interview with the Boston Globe, she said it is not her job to flatter people.

“At least they can figure out which one is Tom Brady,” Rosenberg said, noting that she had little time to do the sketch.

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