The British media’s self-appointed guardians of decency have their eyes on Hollywood again. This time, it’s a Tinseltown star turned online guru. The manosphere’s newest messiah. And the ethics board is sharpening its pencils.
The actor in question? Not saying yet. Sources tell me the star has built a following of disaffected young men on private Telegram channels, charging £500 a year for “masterclasses” on masculinity. His pitch: society has emasculated men, feminism is a hoax, and he knows the way back to power. Sound familiar? It should. The manosphere playbook is old news. But the actor’s A-list credentials give him reach beyond the usual groypers and pick-up artists.
Leaks show the board’s investigation was triggered by a formal complaint from a women’s rights group. They point to videos where the actor tells men to “stop being simps” and to “reclaim your birthright.” Coded language? Maybe. But the board is under pressure from MPs to act. “If this was an imam saying similar things about women, we’d be in a national crisis,” one Labour backbencher told me. “Why is an actor given a free pass?”
The actor’s camp is defiant. A source close to him described the investigation as “a witch hunt by out-of-touch liberals who can’t handle the truth.” The line has played well with his core audience. Donations have spiked. Merch sales up. The controversy is a marketing gift.
But here’s the real game: the board has weak teeth. It can slap wrists, issue apologies, but it can’t ban anyone from YouTube or arrest anyone. The actor is outside the UK, outside the board’s jurisdiction. The complaint is symbolic. It’s about drawing a line in the sand for other influencers.
Meanwhile, Downing Street is watching nervously. The PM’s team fears this story could be a lightning rod for the culture war. They’re already dealing with a rebellion on Rwanda deportations. The last thing they need is a Hollywood actor firing up the base and splitting the Conservative vote.
Polling data I’ve seen shows a generational divide: under-35s are split, with a third of young men agreeing that “feminism has gone too far.” That’s a mobilisable bloc. The actor is tapping into it. The Labour leadership knows this. They’re staying quiet, letting the board take the flak.
What happens next? The board will dither. The actor will double down. The media will feast. And in a few months, this will be a footnote in the culture war archives. But for now, the manosphere’s newest prophet is selling hope and hatred to a generation looking for answers. And nobody in Westminster knows how to stop it.
