Born in Sumtara to Dutch parents, Brand has acted primarily in the United Kingdom, often as Dutch or German characters. He had a running part on the BBC school serial Grange Hill (Mr. Van Der Groot in 1991) and appeared in episodes of Law & Order: UK, Keen Eddie, the 2016 War & Peace (as the Austrian war minister), and the 2017 Einstein biodrama Genius. Films include Woman in Gold (with Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds) and Private Peaceful (with Richard Griffiths).