Investigating the dark online sub-culture of “incels” – involuntary celibates – men who believe that they are incapable of finding anyone to have a sexual relationship with.
They usually inhabit the darker corners of the Internet, in large part communicating anonymously with each other. It is a world that is full of misogyny, anger and hatred. There are violent videos posted on the online forums – with women at the centre of them.
In 2014, the wider world became aware of this sub-culture, when a self-professed young incel named Elliot Rodger carried out a mass shooting in the United States. Since then there have been several violent attacks by men related to the incel movement.
In this documentary, we delve into the world of inceldom to try to find out who these young men and boys are, and what is going on for them that is leading them into a world that can have devastating consequences for themselves and others around them.
We meet an Irish man we’re calling ‘Paul’. Paul is in his 30s and, though he tried to date when he was younger, he never managed to progress any dates to a romantic relationship. He tells us that the extent of his sexual experience is a few half-drunken kisses at a house parties.
When he came into contact with incel forums online ten years ago, he found what he believed to be an answer to the situation that he was in. Spurred on by the posts online, he concluded that he was not good looking enough to be attractive to women.
Incels are deeply concerned with looks. They classify people into different categories: A ‘Chad’ is a very good-looking man – athletic, employed and never short of a girlfriend. A ‘Stacy’ on the other hand is a vacuous woman, only interested in looks and in money.
In the incel world, Stacies are the root of much of the unhappiness of these men, and the levels of misogyny in the forums are shocking.
There is a belief that is perpetuated on the forums that those who are not extremely good-looking are doomed to a life of solitude. There is an air of despair to the forums – with the view that, for those who have not won ‘the genetic lottery’, there is no hope.
We discover that among this global community of men, there are Irish incels engaging with this troubling content. We find a world that is filled with loneliness, anxiety and sadness, and young men and boys who feel lost in the world today.
Produced by Alan Bradley and Nicoline Greer.
