Twisted incel brands women ‘evil hypocrites’ and defends vile Andrew Tate as toxic world behind Adolescence is laid bare

CHOKING back tears, the mum confesses her darkest shame – the teenage son she lovingly raised is now a misogynist after being radicalised by vile content online.

These fears are becoming worryingly normal in modern-day Britain due to women-hating figures like Andrew Tate, as depicted in harrowing Netflix drama Adolescence.

In it troubled teen Jamie Miller, played by Owen Cooper, stabs to death an older schoolgirl after she rejected him and labelled him an incel – someone who is involuntarily celibate – on Instagram.

Stephen Graham, who plays the boy’s devastated dad, is aghast by his son’s actions – much like the unnamed mum, who called the NSPCC Helpline after her son, 17, developed “a strong dislike towards women”;.

Scared and unsure of what to do, she says: “He often refers to girls as ‘bi***es’ and that men are basically the superior sex.”;

She noticed her son becoming increasingly withdrawn, spending hours on his phone lapping up the bile spout by self-identified misogynist Tate and other hate preachers.

“I’m worried he is being radicalised from what he’s viewing online,”; the mum says. “This is not the kind of person I want my son looking up to.”;

She’s not alone in her concerns, a Sun investigation reveals teenage girls have expressed they “don’t want to live”; if the misogynistic abuse they have been subjected to continues.

They claim to have been bullied and sexually harassed by boys harbouring views of Tate and one charity warns online algorithms are acting as “the recruiting sergeant”; to lure boys to “join sadistic online groups dedicated to extreme violence”;.

A leading anthropologist tells us dangerous content of the manosphere – blogs, websites, and social media promoting masculinity and misogyny – “is everywhere”; and is no longer “on the fringes of society”; thanks to influencers, who “paint a very nihilistic picture of the world”; where men are “public enemy number one”;.

Someone who knows the manosphere’s impact only too well is Dominic Schmidt, who openly identified as an incel and says he “hates most women”;.

Due to his misogynistic views Dominic, from Ohio, is isolated. He isn’t close to his family apart from his dad, who he says “finds me weird”; and has very few friends.

Of his four relationships, the 27-year-old virgin claims “all women have treated me badly”;, which influences his loathing of females and insists manosphere content “doesn’t brainwash people”;.

“Women are so shallow, evil and very hypocritical,”; he tells me, and worryingly is unwilling to find exceptions to his beliefs.

“Women judge us for not making six figures, not being six foot tall with six-pack abs and a chiselled jaw, and a three-storey house. If we don’t we aren’t worth anything to them.”;

Dominic believes Andrew Tate is “right about a lot of things”; and contrary to what’s seen in Adolescence, doesn’t believe their content content corrupts young minds.

He says: “Not all incels are violent, like [serial killer] Elliot Roger, but there are more than you think. I’m not a violent one. I think that’s bad and shouldn’t happen.

“I don’t think incel and misogynistic videos brainwash men to kill, lots of men just hate women, it’s only a small amount who kill.

“I wouldn’t blame social media for why someone goes crazy. If it did all incels would be killing people and there are a lot of virgin men out there like me.

“But if you’re bullied by a woman and you’re already mentally ill or have some wrong with you psychologically that may push someone over the edge.”;

80/20 rule

Believing women are only interested in men who look like Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Timothee Chalamet and Tom Cruise, Dominic isn’t confident about his love life.

He believes in the ‘80/20 rule’, also mentioned in Adolescence, which argues that 20 per cent of the most dominant men hoard 80 per cent of women, and says “a**holes are always treated better”;.

The view is believed by nearly 81 per cent of incels surveyed in the 2024 UK Government report and nearly 55 per cent used anonymous social media to vent their anger in the past year.

Those platforms and forums reinforce these views with Dominic saying: “There are posts like, ‘I’m subhuman trash what can I do to get women or to improve my looks? Why are women so cruel? And stuff like that.”

“Some people do talk down on women, calling them sl**s and w****s but a lot of it is men asking others to rate their appearances to help with ‘looksmaxxing.’”;

The term refers to men trying to find out what they can do to make themselves the most attractive to women as they can be.

Dominic believes an ‘incel dating service or girlfriend experience’ is in dire need and admits: “Maybe if I wasn’t a virgin I would support women.”;

He wrongly believes “men always do harder jobs”; so should be paid more and women shouldn’t be allowed abortions because there “must be consequences for sex addicts”;.

Dominic also incorrectly believes “women’s body counts”; – the number of people they have slept with – are the reason for “high STD rates”; across the world.

Abuse ‘normalised' in school

The terrifying rise of the toxic online content is having a chilling effect on both boys and girls – with reports of teens feeling ‘suicidal' over the toxic abuse.

In one Childline transcript shared with Flying Eze, a 14-year-old girl says she “doesn’t want to live”; anymore because, thanks to the likes of Tate and others, “misogyny has become normalised”; at her school.

She reveals most of her female pals have experienced sexual harassment already and adds: “If the rest of my life is like school, then I don't want to live it. I guess I'll just have to suck it up because what else can I do?!”;

It’s leaving girls worried about their careers too, with a 13-year-old saying she and pals are picked on by boys, heavily influenced by Tate, for wanting to “become things that ‘aren’t for women’”;.

She continues: “It’s made me feel like I’ll never get into my chosen field considering people like them will be in the future generation. I hate it so much, but I know I can’t do anything to stop it.”;

Another girl, 12, blames “this creep Tate”;, who she labels as “absolutely vile”;, for polluting her brother’s mind and had a “massive row”; because he won’t stop watching him.

She adds: “I don’t think my family realise how damaging Tate is to society, and I can’t believe people like my brother look up to him.”

One 16-year-old revealed she no longer enjoys her pastime of playing video games because of sexist remarks in those where there is voice chat.

She says: “There were some guys talking about how the only women they like are the ones that stay in the kitchen and keep quiet. They were talking about sex stuff too, and that’s when I left cos it gave me the creeps!”;

The disturbing views peddled by the likes of Tate – who is facing charges of rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal group to exploit women – are watched by millions online.

He’s previously claimed women “bear some responsibility”; for rape, instructed men on how to ‘pimp out women’ and leaves vile posts about celebrities including telling Ariana Grande she “looks like a crack h**”; and “I would no longer f*** you”;.

These kinds of views trickle down into the minds of vulnerable and impressionable young men, which in turn is leaving women terrified.

One 17-year-old told Childline: “Wherever you look there’s always comments about how women are stupid and useless, and men excusing other men for sexual assault and blaming the girl instead. I don’t know how to deal with these feelings right now.”;

The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys!

Incel Alek Minassian

Online safety charities are deeply concerned, including Andy Burrows of the Molly Rose Foundation, who tells us: “Online misogyny is a growing epidemic that is playing out in classrooms across the country and presents an urgent threat to teens.

“As well as normalising sexist and misogynistic views, algorithmically-driven content is acting as a recruiting sergeant for boys to join sadistic online groups dedicated to extreme violence that even coerce girls into self-harm and suicide.”;

‘Incel rebellion'

In the year up to 2023, young men accounted for 83 per cent of children cautioned or convicted for violent offences – and while most is related to gang culture, the manosphere also bears some blame.

A quarter of incels answered “sometimes” or “often” when asked if they justify violence against people their group consider enemies, in a 2024 report by the Commission for Countering Extremism.

While just over five per cent, of the 561 incels from the UK and US, solely replied “often” to the question – their honesty may be questioned.

Notable cases recent cases include Plymouth shooter Jake Davison, who gunned down his mother and four others before killing himself in 2021.

Previously, he spent hours online and of a million files analysed by police, nearly 60 contained “shocking and unacceptable content” including posts about incels.

Davison despised sexually active women and raged in Reddit posts about single mothers as well as denouncing his own mum as “vile dysfunction chaotic”.

That same year ‘Incel follower' Gabrielle Friel received a 10-year sentence for amassing a stockpile of weapons to carry out a terrorist attack.

And last year, crossbow killer Kyle Clifford shot dead his ex-girlifrend Louise Hunt, her sister and mother. Just 24 hours earlier, he had watched ultra-violent misogyny content online – including 10 clips by Tate, who later branded him an “idiot”.

Across the pond, Elliot Rodger stabbed and shot six in Isla Vista, California, and intended to shoot up a sorority house due to deep-seated hatred of women in 2014.

He left behind a video and a 141-page autobiography detailing his anger about having “never even kissed a girl” and said he had “no choice but to exact revenge on the society” that “denied” him sex and love.

Sickeningly, Rodger – who took his own life – has since been hailed a ‘hero' by incels and inspired Canadian Alek Minassian, who mowed down 26 people, killing 11, in 2018.

They say, ‘The world is stacked against you and it’s a game that’s impossible to win. You’re right, women don’t want you, achieving success will be really difficult for you and we’re here to help you'

Saul Parker

Prior to the bloodbath and his suicide, Minassian wrote: “The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys! All hail the Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!”

‘Chads' are muscular, popular men who sleep with lots of women, while ‘Stacys' are ultra-feminine, attractive and unattainable except to the former male group, according to incel ideology.

‘It's everywhere'

Anthropologist Saul Parker, 48, co-founder of research organisation The Good Side, was shocked to discover how rife misogynistic content has become.

“It’s everywhere, which may sound alarmist but it’s true,”; Saul said. “It’s an overwhelming part of their world.

“We have to stop thinking of these young men as being on the fringe of society because the majority are exposed to this content in some way.”;

It emerged while surveying thousands of those aged 16 to 25 about suicide prevention for charity Movember and interviewed a further 100 from the UK, US and Australia.

The bile was peddled to them while looking for answers to questions like “how to get a girl, be successful, earn money – often through cryptocurrency – or get fitter”;, which makes up 80 per cent of their content.

“That’s why this content is so dangerous, it seems quite innocent on the surface but then there is also misogynistic content too,”; Saul says.

At first, those who actively consume manfluencer content told him they felt “super confident”; and validated about their fears but over time that often diminished into depression.

“Young men feel like they're public enemy number one, that they aren’t welcome in society, are the least valued and don’t feel like people,”; Saul tells us.

“One of the tricks of the manosphere is it says things like ‘I see you, I see your problems and they are valid’ but it paints a very nihilistic picture of the world.

“They say, ‘The world is stacked against you and it’s a game that’s impossible to win. You’re right, women don’t want you, achieving success will be really difficult for you and we’re here to help you.’

“Obviously, they don't have the answers and the young men they attract feel worthless and are more likely to feel sad, depressed, anxious and harassed when the advice doesn’t work.”;

Low-esteem, anger and mental health struggles are especially present in the misogyny community.

The Government's 2024 survey found one in five incels contemplated suicide every day for the prior two weeks, many presented a “high degree of victimhood” and a third passed the cut-off point for an autism spectrum assessment.

Saul believes young men not being taught the history of gender politics leaves them “more susceptible to dangerous messages about gender dynamics and misogyny”;.

“Growing up at a time when gender equality is the norm, they don’t really understand things like ‘male privilege’,”; he explains.

Some people do talk down on women, calling them sl**s and w****s but a lot of it is men asking others to rate their appearances to help with ‘looksmaxxing'

Dominic Schmidt

“They told us, ‘I don't feel privileged, I don't feel like I have an advantage’ so it’s very hard for them to relate to.”;

One thing that “really surprised”; Saul was the large number of young men who considered Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson and other misogynists “like father figures and role models”;.

“So many of them told us things like, ‘Jordan Peterson has got my back’ and ‘he’s in my corner’ but in reality, people like him don’t have their backs,”; he says.

“All he’s really thinking about is his YouTube revenue, he is a commercial content creator making millions of dollars a year from his online shows.”;

While many have called for hate preachers to be banned, it’s clear this approach doesn’t work and “risks driving content deeper underground”; where it’s even harder to see and challenge it.

Despite Tate being banned on multiple social media sites, Saul says his misogyny-promoting videos are “all over TikTok and YouTube”; and are “hugely prevalent online because fans cut-up clips to share on the platforms.”

“They will have YouTube playing in the background, when they watch one video it will autoplay the next one and the next one,”; Saul explains.

“Our research found 12 per cent of internet traffic is driven by the YouTube algorithm meaning it’s content people haven’t chosen to watch, which is where it becomes dangerous.”;.

‘Toxic cocktail'

According to Saul, one of the main ways to help misogynists is to “welcome them back into the tent of society”;.

He’s spoken to many who previously described themselves as ‘red-pilled’ – meaning they ascribe to a misogynistic view of the world – before turning away from women-hating.

Saul says: “They were people who used to be in Andrew Tate’s Hustler’s University and there were a few interesting things that served as off-ramps to get them out of this ideology.

“Some had conversations with women and girls in their lives, who helped them to rethink what they were being told, giving them reality checks and challenging their views.

“Rather than listening to an angry man they had never met on the internet, they realised to get a date they might be better off talking to a real-life girl.”;

Saul also feels dads, teachers, sports coaches and youth leaders can step up and “play a role in trying to be there for young men and give them real-world advice”;.

Encouraging face-to-face friendships would be beneficial too, with Saul saying most young men they interviewed didn’t have two pals they could invite over or speak to on the phone.

He also believes parents can help by watching YouTube videos with their kids to understand “the world views they are absorbing”; and when necessary challenge them.

There is no easy fix. But charities including the Molly Rose Foundation warn the Prime Minister to protect women and girls from the “toxic cocktail of risks”; by fixing online safety laws or risk them “bearing the brunt of this wave of disturbing but preventable harm”;.

The NSPCC’s policy manager Rani Govender labels the “deeply disturbing themes”; portrayed in Adolescence as “unacceptable risks”; and believes Government intervention is vital.

They say Ofcom’s Child Safety Codes, which are due to be published, are a “crucial opportunity to strengthen our approach to online safety”;.

Additionally, they want “robust and ambitious implementation”; of the Online Safety Act to hold social media platforms accountable for creating safe, age-appropriate spaces for young users.

Rani tells Flying Eze: “Simply banning under-16s from these platforms is not the answer, as this could potentially drive children to less secure, unregulated spaces where risks may be even greater.

“What's needed is effective enforcement of existing age restrictions, better safety-by-design principles, and empowering both parents and children with the knowledge to navigate the digital world safely.”