When Dillon Latham's self-improvement TikToks began promoting more appearance-centric ideals, he was doxxed by an unknown group. What happened?
The Gist:
- TikTok star Dillon Latham was doxxed after allegedly creating videos that provided advice for "looksmaxxing."
- Looksmaxxing is a term used by incels for improving one's physical appearance, often with the intent to sexually attract women who have rejected them.
TikTok star Dillon Latham has amassed a huge following seemingly based on his self-improvement videos. Despite only being 18, as of the time of this writing, he peddles skincare products and jawline gum with the fervor of someone who is much older. To be perfectly honest, getting skincare advice from a teenager doesn't really make sense and yet he was doing pretty well, until recently.
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The young influencer was doxxed by a mysterious group of individuals who believe Dillon has been pushing the incel concept of looksmaxxing in his content. The results have been frightening as Dillon uploads updates about people showing up at his home and sharing personal information online. What else happened to Dillon Latham? Here's what we know.
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What happened to Dillon Latham? He's genuinely frightened.
It appears the TikTok that started it all was uploaded Aug. 8, 2023, and begins with text over the video that reads, "Improve your looks." In Dillon's previous TikToks, which he describes as self-affirming, the influencer is mostly focused on physical appearance. In one video he makes an impossible promise that involves "avoiding aging," but it's really about avoiding the sun. He also incorrectly states that some sunscreens can cause cancer.
In his "improve your looks" TikTok, Dillon shares three ways he believes this can happen. "This is mostly catered towards guys. This is actually what I've been doing for such a long time." Again, Dillon has already proven to be someone unreliable when it comes to accurate information so proceed with caution.
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First, Dillon suggests eating protein with every meal. "Anytime you eat something, you want to have a high protein content," he said. According to the Mayo Clinic, "Anywhere from 10 percent to 35 percent of your calories should come from protein." So, there's your goal.
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Next, you need to "take care of your hairline," says Dillon who urges fans to use minoxidil on a daily basis. This is best used for the treatment of alopecia, but can help with thinning hair. Finally, Dillon encourages everyone to develop a skincare routine for which he teases out a future video.
After this video dropped, Dillon was doxxed. He posted several subsequent TikToks about being targeted but for what, it's unclear. "This is the worst thing that's ever happened to me on social media," he says in one video. "People are outside of my house, sending me videos." He has also received death threats on top of strangers showing up at the home of his parents and grandparents. Why is this happening? Some believe it has something to do with looksmaxxing.
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What is looksmaxxing? It's a concept created by incels.
Incels, which is short for involuntary celibate, is an online community that believes they are owed something from women. Usually that thing is a relationship, sexual or otherwise, and leads to violent misogynist rhetoric aimed towards women when they don't get those things. They are also "hostile towards men and women who are sexually active," per Merriam-Webster.
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Looksmaxxing is just one of the many slang words used by members of the incel community. SBS World News defines it as "simply any attempt to improve your physical appearance. It can be as simple as eating healthy or following a skincare routine." It's easy to see why Dillon was accused of engaging in looksmaxxing, although it isn't clear why his videos sparked so much rage.
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In more extreme situations, looksmaxxing involves plastic surgery. A man going by the name Jay told SBS World News that "women will only date the most good-looking men," so he believes "facial features and height are the most important factors when it comes to male attractiveness."
One could argue that women have gotten plastic surgery for decades, and there is no difference. However, looksmaxxing is more sinister as the motivation is usually getting the women who have scorned you. If that doesn't happen, things could get far more dangerous.
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