James Charles is under fire after a now-deleted TikTok rant targeting a lady who allegedly reached out asking for financial help following the collapse of Spirit Airlines. The budget airline reportedly shut down operations last week, leaving roughly 17,000 employees without jobs. Based on Charles, one former worker sent him a direct message that included a GoFundMe link and a request for donations after losing her position. As an alternative of quietly ignoring the message, the wonder influencer recorded a profanity-filled response mocking the girl and questioning why she was asking celebrities for help.
Within the now-circulating clip, Charles sarcastically read the girl’s message aloud before launching into an aggressive rant. “I’m sure they do, sweetheart. I’m sure they do,” he said after reading that “any donations help.” “You recognize what else would assist you to? Getting one other job. Yeah, try that,” Charles said.
Charles continued by accusing the girl of mass messaging influencers as an alternative of applying for employment opportunities. “But you didn’t, ‘cause you’re a lazy piece of sh-t, and also you’re entitled,” he said.
The influencer also appeared particularly upset that the girl allegedly didn’t follow him on social media. “You’re not a fan, you don’t even follow me,” Charles said. “And you think that that I’m gonna send you money since you lost your job?!”
The video quickly spread across social media through screen recordings after it was deleted, sparking intense backlash online. Critics slammed Charles as “privileged,” “out of touch,” and “elitist,” especially given reports that the influencer has amassed a fortune price thousands and thousands.
“Just couldn’t help showing those true colours,” one user responded after another person asked why he would post such a thing. “That is so wild lol why is he so pressed?? Ignore and move on!!!” one other said.
A 3rd chimed in, “Holy sh-t he’s cruel af, I only watched 30 seconds but omg.” As another person expressed, “Yeah, he has never applied for a job in his life if he thinks it takes 30 seconds.”
James Charles Later Issued Public Apology
Following the backlash, Charles returned to TikTok with a second video apologizing for his behavior and admitting the rant was inappropriate. “This video was f-cking silly,” he said. “It was rude, it was obnoxious, it was privileged, and most significantly, it was completely f-cking unnecessary.”
Charles acknowledged that he could have simply ignored the message as an alternative of publicly humiliating the girl online. “It was obnoxious, and I shamed her for asking for assist in a situation where she was clearly really struggling,” he admitted. “This might have been her absolute last resort.”
The influencer also directly apologized to the girl involved and admitted the situation hurt many individuals who watched the clip flow into online. “I feel awful because that wasn’t my intention,” Charles said. “I’m super sorry, especially to the girl from Spirit Airlines.”
Spirit Airlines Shut Down Operations After Failed Financial Rescue Efforts
The controversy surrounding Charles’ comments comes just days after Spirit Airlines officially announced it was shutting down operations entirely. On May 2, the airline confirmed it will cancel all flights and stop operations “effective immediately” following failed restructuring efforts and ongoing financial struggles.
Based on the corporate, rising fuel costs and an inability to secure additional funding ultimately pushed the airline past the purpose of recovery. “For greater than 30 years, Spirit Airlines has played a pioneering role in making travel more accessible and bringing people together while driving affordability across the industry,” Spirit President and CEO Dave Davis said in an announcement.
“Sustaining the business required lots of of thousands and thousands of additional dollars of liquidity that Spirit simply doesn’t have and couldn’t procure,” Davis added. “That is tremendously disappointing and never the consequence any of us wanted.”
Spirit Airlines Customers Scramble For Refunds After Sudden Shutdown
The corporate stated that customers who booked flights directly through Spirit using credit or debit cards would routinely receive refunds, though some transactions may take additional time to process. Meanwhile, travelers who purchased tickets through third-party services or travel agencies were instructed to contact those providers directly for reimbursement.
Spirit also confirmed that customers holding vouchers, loyalty points, or travel credits would wish to file claims through the airline’s ongoing bankruptcy proceedings.