Beauty guru James Charles has now been accused of sending explicit photos to an underage boy when the boy was 16 years old. The boy, now 19-year-old Matthew Larence, alleged that Charles had slid into his Instagram DMs asking what his age was. After confessing that he was 16, Larence claims that Charles continued engaging in flirtatious conversations with him, eventually adding him on Snapchat and sharing nude photographs of himself.
@matthewlarence123 good luck on ur new palette honey. #jamescharles
Larence joins a growing list of young boys and men who have alleged that the longtime beauty guru has shared unsolicited nude photographs and explicit messages with them whilst they were underage. While Larence has not spoken on his sexuality, several previous alleged victims have claimed that Charles told them he could “turn” them gay if they told him they were straight.
The first round of the sexual misconduct and grooming allegations surfaced in 2021, resulting in Charles being dropped by Morphe, his biggest brand deal to date. Years later, Charles has founded his own beauty company, Painted, which he attempted to utilize to rehabilitate his image. In a recent interview with Cosmopolitan, the digital creator additionally revealed that his younger brother has not spoken to him in the two years since the allegations broke.
Painted launched in August, but launched a new palette, “Basic Canvas”, two days ago, the same day Larence released his allegations. The TikTok creator claimed he waited until this point due to his desire to bring awareness to Charles’ allegations rather than his brand. Charles hosted a Painted-sponsored movie night last night in Los Angeles at a screening of “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds And Snakes.”
@jamescharles BASIC CANVAS IS HERE! 🥹🎨🫶🏼 I am SO PROUD of this palette and I really hope you love it as much as I do!!
In spite of the mounting allegations, Charles continues to forge new brand deals and collaborate with other influencers and celebrities. He recently attended model Heidi Klum’s famous Halloween party.
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Social Media Reactions
Critics of Charles continue to side with Larence, finding the screenshotted “age check” message “creepy.”
sending a fan an "age check" is creepy enough…
— quinn (@outtaminds) November 16, 2023
Many continue to entreat people to not purchase things from his brand or support his content online amid the allegations.
Wow so sad that so many people support @jamescharles with all these under age children getting harassed what kind of world are we living in🫥
— jose (@JoSeRaUlMeDiNa) November 16, 2023
It's absolutely heartbreaking that he as a 16 year old CHILD thought he was egging on and enticing a 22 year old adult MAN when he did nothing of the sort. James is also STILL getting caught in the dms of minors to this day how anyone supports him still I'll never understand.
— ~✨ (•αииε •) unapologetic bitch✨~ (@darksolitude96) November 16, 2023
Others reference another controversial figure in the beauty community–Jeffree Starr. While Starr maintains a number of his own controversies, the guru once claimed that Charles was a predator. As more and more claims surface, many recognize that in spite of his flaws, Starr may have been correct about Charles.
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It’s become increasingly clear Jeffree Star was right. It definitely seems like James Charles is a predator. Its sad and disturbing and he continues to get away with it.
— Britt (@Britt_A) November 16, 2023
Charles is yet to address the most recent allegations against him. He has previously denied wrongdoing amid a number of the previous allegations, and once said that he “just wasn’t attracted” to older men in their 20s.
