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Clavicular, the online figure behind the “looksmaxxing” phenomenon that’s taking over some corners of the internet, sat down with 60 Minutes Australia expecting to talk about self-improvement. Instead, he was asked whether he identifies with the incel community. And it was all downhill from there.
When you’re dealing with a community built around optimisation – better skin, sharper jaw, improved symmetry – it doesn’t sound so bad. But once you mix in “bone smashing” (don’t do this), rigid hierarchies around appearance, and possible drug use, you start to see why the whole thing struggles under a bit of scrutiny.
So it’s unsurprising that Clavicular, the king of the looksmaxxers, wilted under some light questioning from Adam Hegarty of 60 Minutes, first about his relationships with women, then about his relationship to the incel community.
“Do I identify as an incel?” Clavicular replied to Hergarty’s question. “I mean, how could you ask me that question as a follow-up… that’s quite literally the worst sequence of questions I think I’ve ever heard.”
Hegarty presses again, linking the term looksmaxxing back to its origins in incel forums. Clavicular pushes back, reframing it as self-improvement, even a way of moving beyond the label incels have tried to distance themselves from.
“So that would be kind of one of the goals is to disassociate from being an incel and overcome that,” says Clavicular.
But Hegarty keeps at it, asking him about his relationship with infamous online myoginist and accused sex-trafficker Andrew Tate.
“Why do you spend time with people like that?,” Hegarty asked
“I see you want to make this political,” Claivcular replied, before taking a personal swipe at Hegarty.
“Too bad I didn’t have time to look into, you know, anything about potentially, you know, who your wife cheated with, but don’t try to go down that line of questioning with me.”
“I’m not married,” Hegarty responded. Moments later, the interview is over, and Clavicular tells him this: “I could teach you about looksmaxxing, and then maybe you could switch that up. Thanks for the time, appreciate the interview.”
It’s not the first time he’s backed out of an interview mid-way. And by all accounts, it probably won’t be his last. Caught between defending himself and dealing with someone not buying it, by his own community’s logic, it’s pretty clear Clavicular was “outmogged”.
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