Would they call themselves misogynists, though? No, no, no. They know women better than women do.

The documentary, “Inside the Manosphere,” follows a handful of male social media personalities who lead a mighty online sector– the aforementioned "manosphere"– inspiring and instructing men to pursue luxurious lifestyles (through expensive courses and investments that just put more money in the owner’s pockets). Their main message is not hard to decipher; in fact, many state it: the future is universal male dominance. 

One such Harrison Sullivan, better known as HSTikkyTokky, runs a content house populated by OnlyFans models, whom he uses in videos as markers of his success and supremacy, yet is very outward in his disgust for these women and their actions. When Theroux pointed out the contradiction and asked about his motivation, Sullivan answered without hesitation:

“Clout,” Sullivan said. “Views.”

Influencer and entrepreneur Justin Waller summed up the manosphere's outlook on gender differences: the man is born with nothing and must fight for everything, but the woman is born with her beauty. Thanks, I suppose. One is a warrior, and the other is a reward.

To these guys, a woman is merely something to profit off of– I mean, something to aid the man in his battle. I mean, someone. With a target demographic of teenage boys and young men, people like Sullivan are appealing to their heightened sexual desires, training them to see women as signals of-and cheat codes to- achievement. It’s hypnosis; if I use hot chicks to promote my get-rich-quick tips, you’ll associate hot chicks with being rich. In this way, women are reduced to another form of currency. Stripped of their humanity, they are now a bendable, sculptable prop that influencers can use in whatever way they deem suitable.  

Myron Gaines, host of the Fresh and Fit Podcast, is another manosphere trailblazer featured in Theroux’s deep dive. A hallmark of Gaines’s practice is inviting several women on his podcast to answer questions about their sexual history and test their intelligence, attempting to make a point in connecting them. In an episode recorded with Theroux, Gaines defended a video claiming that women who are with more men sexually give birth to children with “negative mutations.” Barely fifteen minutes earlier, he expressed his own desire to have multiple wives who obey his demands for intercourse whenever he pleases– “one-sided monogamy,” as it’s referred to throughout the documentary. 

“I love women and actually understand them,” Gaines said on the topic. “Since I understand them, I know what’s best for them.”

Misinformed or made-up data is the backbone of manosphere teachings and, keeping with the red pill mindset, it’s presented as ancient wisdom hidden under contemporary clutter. Influencers fashion themselves into the big brother role, bestowing this knowledge simply because they love you and want you to succeed. With over a quarter of young men reporting feelings of unworthiness, this rallying motivation gets them hooked on the content, creating a loyal fanbase for the creators. In the documentary, countless fans credited the manosphere with changing their lives and providing them with solid role models. 

While it can be easy to dismiss this community as a distant, radical echo chamber, its ideology is already seeping into wider society. Equimundo’s 2025 State of the American Man survey showed that 55% of men identify with certain tenets of the “Man Box,” a set of beliefs promoting an extreme pro-masculinity ideal. Beliefs such as these manifest as a distorted perception of women and their sovereignty. The man’s inflated sense of duty now makes it his responsibility to do “what’s best” for a woman, which is a thinly veiled and– if I may play devil’s advocate– perhaps unconscious excuse to diminish them on the basis of protection. To Justin Waller’s earlier claim, the man lives in ceaseless war, and the woman is too precious not to be hidden away. 

This ideology is playing out in American politics through the accelerating hostility towards women in attitudes and legislation. While on his 2024 campaign trail, President Trump said that he would protect women “whether they like it or not.” Despite this, his first year initiatives directly disadvantaged them: dismantling DEI lessened job opportunities and security for working women while cuts to Medicaid and other healthcare services put mothers’ health at risk. Systems are being disrupted and redesigned in a way that weakens women, forcing them to surrender their power and safety. 

It’s hard to separate the manosphere school of thought from Trump when the two seem so interconnected. As I write this, manosphere influencer Nick Adams just began a role in Trump’s administration. Trump was strongly supported by this demographic throughout his campaign and, exemplified by Adams’s appointment, he is not afraid to cater to them and to make nation-altering decisions that are in line with their rhetoric. 

Complementing this is the rise of social conservatism, with UN Women reporting that, since the COVID-19 pandemic, younger generations have begun regressing in their views on women. Though the manosphere is not to blame, it has been given fertile soil to blossom from. It’s more socially acceptable to express anti-feminist views and gain a following from it because that’s the mindset we’re slipping into. 

This isn’t some near-future dystopian fantasy. It’s encroaching on your reality. If you aren’t concerned, take a lens wipe to your rose-colored glasses. 

Melody Meyer is a sophomore studying Journalism with a concentration in sports broadcasting and is a columnist at The State News. The views in this article are her own and independent of The State News.