Top 10 Popular Influencers Who Turned Out to Be Terrible People

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today were looking at the most disgraceful online creators who shocked fans worldwide with their scandals.

Logan Paul

From Vine to YouTube and now the WWE ring, this online personality has somehow maintained his following despite multiple major controversies. In 2017, he uploaded disrespectful footage of Japans Aokigahara forest on YouTube. The same year, he came under fire for his song No Handlebars, which was criticized for sexualizing women. After a few relatively quiet years, he blew up again in 2023, when he was accused of fraud over a game he co-founded, called CryptoZoo. Pauls brother, Jake, doesnt exactly have a clean reputation either. He has been accused of racism, sexual assault, scams, and was openly a COVID-19 denier. Yet, the Paul brothers popularity is showing no signs of slowing down.

Myka and James Stauffer

Family vlogging is one of the most popular niches on YouTube. Myka and James Stauffer rose to prominence on the platform through their family vlogs. Some of their most successful videos were those where they discussed their parenting journey. Their channel grew even more when they shared the story of how they adopted a baby boy, Huxley, from China. However, after a short time, Huxley had been rehomed by the Stauffers. The couple claimed that they couldnt adequately care for the child, who was on the autism spectrum. Subscribers immediately turned on the family, accusing them of adopting the kid for cash and clout. Myka and James have since left YouTube, while Huxley, who now has another name, is in a better home.

James Charles

This beauty YouTubers career came crashing down due to repeated controversies. First, he was accused of making advances toward a heterosexual man by his close friend Tati Westbrook. Although the tide turned in his favor eventually, more serious allegations followed. Several underage male accusers claimed James had sent them inappropriate messages and photos. The MUA took accountability for two of those accusations, but emphasized that he didnt know the boys involved were minors. One of his alleged victims admitted that he had lied to James about being eighteen. Just when things were looking up for the creator, he got involved with fellow influencer Evan Johnson, who was arrested in April 2025 for domestic assault. James denied having a relationship with him, but lost followers nonetheless.

Belle Gibson

This Aussie influencer serves as a cautionary tale against believing everything you see on the internet. She lied about living with cancer, treating it with alternative medicine, a strict diet of whatever she considered to be healthy foods, and working out, misleading countless followers. She was rolling in dough from successfully launching an app and a cookbook, while faking donations to charities. In 2015, she admitted to fabricating her cancer diagnosis and was ultimately fined two hundred fifty-eight thousand U.S. dollars by the Federal Court of Australia. Gibsons elaborate scam is the subject of the Netflix documentary The Search For Instagram's Worst Con Artist and the crime drama Apple Cider Vinegar, starring Kaitlyn Dever.

Ruby Franke

The infamous creator of the 8 Passengers YouTube channel is another toxic product of the family vlogging culture. Ruby Frankes entire claim to fame was her family of six children. However, viewers soon started noticing the disturbing modes of discipline she used with them. From allegedly banning her son from sleeping in his bed to sending her daughter to school without lunch, her punishments were reportedly severe and problematic. Things finally came to a head after she started making parenting advice content with her colleague, counselor Jodi Hildebrandt. In 2023, Rubys young son escaped from Jodis house and showed up injured at a neighbors place, seeking sustenance. One of her daughters was also emaciated. Both Ruby and Jodi were arrested and sentenced to prison.

Colleen Ballinger

This creator built her empire on young fans support and went on to be accused of behaving inappropriately with minors. Colleen, best known for her character Miranda Sings, was canceled after YouTubers Adam McIntyre and Kodee Dahl accused her of misconduct. The former claimed she had sent him undergarments and explicit images of Trisha Paytas when he was underage. Dahl said she asked him improper questions online when he was a minor. A staff member on the set of her Netflix show Haters Back Off also opened up about her alleged racism. This wasnt surprising, given Colleens history of culturally insensitive content. If all this wasnt bad enough, she made an apology video while playing the ukulele, undermining the seriousness of the accusations.

Jeffree Star

Anyone unfamiliar with this media personality probably wouldnt know how controversial he is, simply because he seems to be doing so well. His YouTube channel has millions of subscribers, and his beauty brand, Jeffree Star Cosmetics, is still in business. However, he has faced numerous scandals in his career. Jeffree is reportedly racist, used Nazi imagery on his website, which was disturbingly named Lipstick Nazi, and even had allegations of sexual assault made against him. To make matters worse, he was accused of paying his supposed victims to keep mum about his indecency. Star lawyered up, claimed there was no truth to the accusations, and moved on. Now, hes so infamous for his questionable opinions, even cancel culture seems to have given up on him.

Andrew Tate

The kickboxer-turned-face of the manosphere is a self-proclaimed misogynist who thrives by espousing toxic masculinity. This has earned him millions of supporters across social media, many of whom are not even old enough to understand harmful manosphere concepts like involuntary celibacy. His dangerous influence on young minds is explored in Netflixs viral hit show Adolescence. Tate is also known to sell online courses that the BBC believes may be associated with the exploitation of women. In 2022, he was arrested in Romania and later charged with alleged sexual assault, trafficking, and organized criminal activities. Meanwhile, police are looking into whether his purported victims were minors. He is facing similar legal charges in the U.K. and the U.S. Shockingly, Tates popularity is hardly fading.

Ladarius Morshun Brownlee

If youve ever been on the couple content side of TikTok, youve probably come across the account denoandzahra. The pair running it, Ladarius Morshun Brownlee and his girlfriend Seyeddah Hashemi, had a considerable fan base who adored their seemingly perfect relationship. However, that illusion was shattered when Brownlee was reportedly arrested for shooting Hashemi after an argument turned physical. Luckily, she survived, but allegedly sustained a traumatic brain injury. Ladarius claimed their relationship had always been abusive, and seemingly admitted to shooting her, according to reports. Not long after the incident, social media was abuzz with speculation that the two had gotten back together.

Ali Abulaban

This influencer went from comedy on the clock app to life in prison. Ali Abulaban, also known as JinnKid, shot his wife, Ana, and her friend, Rayburn Cardenas Barron, to death in 2021. His abusive behavior toward Ana was public knowledge, as it was often seen on his live streams. How those videos even earned views without raising red flags is a different question entirely. Abulaban was found guilty of the deaths of both Ana and Rayburn, but the judge doubted whether he was ever regretful. The criminal maintained that he had substances in his system when he committed the heinous act, calling it a crime of passion. Either way, Ali is not going to be stepping out of prison again in his lifetime.

Were you ever caught off guard by an influencer you trusted? Tell us in the comments!