James Charles has publicly apologized following a wave of criticism over a deleted video in which he mocked a laid-off Spirit Airlines employee who had sought financial assistance from him. The influencer, who has amassed a fortune estimated at $22 million, took to TikTok on Friday to address the controversy and the backlash it sparked.
In his apology, Charles acknowledged his own privilege and admitted that his comments, where he referred to the former airline employee as a “lazy sh**,” were both rude and unwarranted. The video, he conceded, was “incredibly unnecessary,” demonstrating a clear lack of empathy.
“This video was f****** stupid,” Charles candidly admitted to his 2.8 million followers. “It was rude, it was obnoxious, and it was privileged. Most importantly, it was completely f****** unnecessary,” he stated, expressing regret for his actions.
He further reflected on his behavior, recognizing that he shamed someone who was evidently in a difficult position and might have been reaching out as a last resort. “It was obnoxious, and I shamed her for asking for help in a situation where she was clearly really struggling,” Charles acknowledged.
James also noted that upon receiving the direct message from the former Spirit Airlines worker, he had the option to simply ignore it and continue with his day, a choice he now realizes might have been the more compassionate path.
The media personality added that when he first came across the DM from the former Spirit Airlines employee, he ‘absolutely had the choice to ignore it and say absolutely nothing at all and move on with my day.’
James Charles issued a groveling apology after receiving fierce backlash over a now-deleted video of him mocking a laid-off Spirit Airlines worker after she reached out to him for financial help
The budget airline shut down all operations last week, leaving 17,000 employees out of work
Charles said that he couldn’t explain ‘why her message just triggered me and I decided instead to make a video about it.’
He admitted to his followers that he shouldn’t have ‘assumed she was just copying and pasting this DM as an easy way out.’
In regards to making the apology video, the star said that he gets similar messages ‘every single day.’
‘And for me personally, it definitely sucks to receive messages from people that don’t follow you and don’t support you. Treating you like a personal ATM or bank account.’
Charles then shared that what ‘sucks even f***ing more is not knowing where your next paycheck is coming from and not being sure whether you will be able to put food on the table for yourself and your family.’
He expressed that no matter what his intentions were with his original clip, it still ‘came across as super f***ing privileged and like I was basically shaming anybody that’s unemployed for not trying hard enough to find a job.’
The influencer said that he felt ‘awful’ for ‘hurting a lot of people.’
Charles added that he ‘knows’ that the ‘job market sucks right now’ and has people in his life looking for work.
‘It was obnoxious, and I shamed her for asking for help in a situation where she was clearly really struggling, and this could have been her absolute last resort,’ he said
Charles, an influencer with his own beauty brand Painted, is worth a reported $22 million
The star also expressed that if the person who had reached out to him ‘happened to send out GoFundMe links as their method of trying to make it by, who am I to judge?
‘Especially when you consider the fact that my method of figuring it out and getting by was making makeup videos online. I just happened to get really lucky. And now, years later, I am in a blessed and privileged position.’
He said that when he made the clip, he was ‘speaking from a very privileged, obnoxious, ignorant standpoint.’
Charles added that he was ‘super sorry’ for disappointing those that were upset over the video.
He concluded the apology clip by encouraging the former Spirit Airlines worker to reach out to him so he can apologize to her ‘directly’ and ‘help you out a little bit.’
Charles first responded with a now-deleted video on his social media, blasting the woman as a ‘lazy piece of s*** and mocking her request for help.
‘I just got a DM on here from a girl that said, ‘Good morning, James. I know you’ll probably never see this, but if you could just take one minute to read it it would really mean a lot to me.
‘I’m really struggling right now because Spirit Airlines just filed for bankruptcy and I have lost my job. Here’s a GoFundMe link. Any donations help,’ he read aloud in a sarcastic tone.
Charles then shared that what ‘sucks even f***ing more is not knowing where your next paycheck is coming from and not being sure whether you will be able to put food on the table for yourself and your family’; seen in April in Indio
Charles first responded with a now-deleted video on his social media, blasting the woman as a ‘lazy piece of s*** and mocking her request for help
Charles didn’t hold back, offering what many saw as biting advice.
‘I’m sure they do, sweetheart. I’m sure they do. You know what else would help you? Getting another job. Yeah, try that.
‘Because in the time that it took you to copy and paste the same f*** ass message to myself, who you don’t follow, by the way, and probably a hundred other influencers and celebrities, you could’ve applied for a hundred other jobs.
‘But you didn’t, ’cause you’re a lazy piece of s***, and you’re entitled, and you think that influencers and celebrities should fund your life for you. Why would I ever help you?’
A major sticking point seemed to be that the woman didn’t follow him.
‘You’re not a fan, you don’t even follow me, you’ve never supported me, this is your first time DMing. And you think that I’m gonna send you money because you lost your job?!
‘Oh my God, welcome to the real world, sweetheart. People lose their jobs every f***** day.
‘And you’re white, pretty, and able-bodied; you’re in a much better position than a lot of other people out here who are trying clearly much harder to make a better life for themselves. Why would I f**** help you?!
The video has since been removed, but screen-recordings are circulating online, sparking widespread backlash from fans who have slammed Charles for his harsh response, calling him ‘entitled’, ‘elitist’ and ‘out of touch’; seen in 2025 in L.A.
‘I’m not f****** helping you. All you did was lost your job. Welcome to the real world. I could at least understand if you were like, ‘James, I’m a longtime fan, here’s a trillion years of DMs and my support for you, I love you.’
He added, ‘I’m suffering with a really rare genetic disease that there’s no cure for, and I’m trying to raise money for myself and other people that have this.’ Maybe I would help.
‘This b***h, you lost your f****** job? Ugh! What are we gonna do? Nothing! I’m gonna do nothing, you know what you need to do? Go find a f****** new one girl! Put some effort into the workplace! Ugh!’
The video has since been removed, but screen-recordings are circulating online, sparking widespread backlash from fans who have slammed Charles for his harsh response, calling him ‘entitled’, ‘elitist’ and ‘out of touch.’
