Clavicular’s Looksmaxxing Videos Push Young Men Toward Bone Smashing And Meth Use

A trend described as “looksmaxxing” has evolved from “the dark corners of the Internet” into a global movement shaping “the identity of an entire generation of young men,” according to Virgule.lu. The article says the American influencer Braden Peters, 20, known as Clavicular, rose to fame with “shocking looksmaxxing videos” that include “bone smashing” and, “according to his own statements,” methamphetamine for “lean maxxing.” Virgule.lu quotes Dr. Catherine Tebaldi, a linguistic anthropologist at the University of Luxembourg, warning that “We are trained, it’s pushed further and further; we see these things all the time, it quickly becomes normal for young men.” The same piece links the path into the milieu to online platforms, describing how men “search on TikTok or Instagram for harmless fitness tips or skincare advice” before algorithms push more extreme content.

“A famous manfluencer livestreams hunts of gay men and normalizes street harassment of women from Marbella (Inside the Manosphere, 2026)”

EL PAÍS

The Intercept says Braden Peters, “better known online as Clavicular,” sold “ascension” as “the promise that a better face, leaner body, harsher jaw” could buy power. It reports that in April Peters was hospitalized after a “suspected overdose during a livestream in Miami,” and that he later described the hospitalization as “brutal.” The Intercept adds that “YouTube recently removed his channels for repeated policy violations,” and that he is facing “a civil lawsuit in Florida from Aleksandra Mendoza” alleging battery, fraud, and emotional distress. In the same account, the outlet says the claims include that he “injected her with a non-FDA-approved substance during a livestream” and engaged in “nonconsensual sex.”

El País frames the manosphere as a misogynist, resentful turn among youths by describing how fiction and nonfiction explore “the misogynist, conspiracist, and reactionary turn in the dominant discourses about the ideal of the modern man.” It quotes Luis Ignacio García, author of Fascismo Cosplay, explaining in an email exchange that “the manosphere thrives in this context,” and it describes how the movement includes “imitators of Andrew Tate and Clavicular” and red-pill followers. The article also points to violence in its examples, including “a teenage boy who consumes misogynistic content on social networks murders his female classmate after she ridicules him in public.” It further states that “Most will eventually subscribe to the Great Replacement theory and at some point blame Jews, feminists, or migrants for contemporary misfortunes,” tying the online ecosystem to broader extremist narratives.

“This article was first published on February 6, 2026”

Virgule.lu