In today’s social media boom, influencers have become the new A-listers, garnering millions of dedicated followers.
One viral post, and suddenly you’re on top of the internet, ruling everyone’s feeds. But as quickly as it comes, one wrong move and the fame can disappear just as fast.
From viral TikTokers to famed YouTubers, these 20 influencers have seen it all, the massive rise and the surprising overnight falls.
Read More: 20 Influencers Whose Careers Tanked In The Blink Of An Eye Because Of Major Scandals
#1 Ruby Franke
Ruby Franke was one of the biggest family vloggers on YouTube, long before the niche became popular.
In the mid to late 2010s, her family vlogging channel, 8 Passengers, had over 1000 videos and 2.3 million subscribers.
The cracks in her picture-perfect online image first emerged in 2020, when several of her videos showcasing harsh parenting methods received widespread backlash.
In these videos, Ruby disciplined her six children by withholding food for days and making them sleep on bean bags instead of proper beds for months.
As a result of the fierce criticism and declining viewership, Franke deleted the channel altogether.
She then began creating content on a different channel with her marriage counselor and business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt.
However, her final downfall came in August 2023, when her 12-year-old son, who was severely malnourished and injured, escaped Hildebrandt’s home and sought help from a neighbor.
This led to the immediate arrest of both Ruby and Jodi. They later pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated child exploitation and were sentenced to 4-30 years in prison.
Following the scandal, all channels under her name and videos featuring the vlogger and her children were deleted from YouTube.
In January 2025, Ruby’s eldest daughter, Shari Franke, released a memoir titled The House of My Mother: A Daughter’s Quest for Freedom, where she narrates her experience of growing up with Ruby and how she healed from her mother’s exploitation.
Image credits: moms_of_truth / Instagram
#2 Myka And James Stauffer
Myka and James Stauffer were popular family vloggers with 7,00,000 subscribers on their main YouTube channel, where they shared parenting videos of their four children.
In 2017, at the peak of their vlogging career, the couple adopted 2-year-old Huxley from China.
However, in 2020, fans noticed that the adopted son was missing from their videos, which typically featured the entire family and documented their daily lives.
The couple released an emotional confession, revealing that they had relocated Huxley to a different home and family.
The child had been diagnosed with autism, and Myka and James admitted they “never wanted to be” in that position.
“There were a lot more special needs that we weren’t aware of and that we were not told… We never wanted to be in this position, and we’ve been trying to get his needs met and help him out as much as possible.”
The announcement also prompted an investigation from authorities to ensure the child’s well-being, though the case was closed within a month with no legal action taken against the YouTubers.
Following immense backlash, they deleted their YouTube channel, and Myka has since remained inactive across all platforms.
Meanwhile, James runs an account focused on automobiles.
Image credits: mykastauffer / Instagram
#3 Liver King
Brian Johnson, or the Liver King, became popular with his raw organ-eating videos and ripped physique, promoting what he called the “ancestral lifestyle.”
But in late 2022, he faced his biggest career controversy when leaked emails revealed he was secretly spending over $11,000 a month on steroids, despite swearing for years that his body was completely natural.
In a now-viral YouTube video, Johnson admitted to using performance-enhancing substances.
“Yes, I’ve done steroids. And yes, I am on steroids.”
Fans felt betrayed, calling the scandal a “stain” on his name and the fitness world.
He faced multiple lawsuits, including a $25 million suit accusing him of fraud and deception, which was later dropped.
In June 2025, he was even arrested for making threats against podcast host Joe Rogan on social media.
“Man to man, I’m picking a fight with you.”
Despite the backlash, Johnson remains active on social media and attempted to clear his name with his Netflix documentary Untold: The Liver King.
But fans are still wary of his fitness claims as he continues to push his controversial lifestyle.
Image credits: liverking / Instagram
#4 James Charles
The makeup guru and vlogger James Charles rose to fame with his stunning makeup skills when he was still a teenager.
His YouTube channel, now home to 24 million subscribers, quickly became a fan favorite and even led to him becoming the first male model for CoverGirl magazine.
But with his fame came a load of scandals that began in 2019, when his former YouTuber friend Tati Westbrook and model Gage Gomez blasted him on social media for alleged predatory behavior.
James addressed the claims on X, calling the accusations a “blatant LIE, which has painted a false image” of him in the eyes of his audience.
The controversy died down after Tati revealed that she had been forced and manipulated by his past collaborators, Jeffree Star and Shane Dawson, into making the accusations against him.
A new scandal unfolded shortly after, in 2021, when a 16-year-old boy accused Charles of exploiting him and sending explicit Snapchat photos.
The controversy snowballed when he did not deny the accusations, although he admitted he did not know the boy was underage.
He was later fired as the host of the YouTube show Instant Influencer, after three more underage boys made similar accusations against him.
During that time, he also took digs at popular Hollywood faces like Alicia Keys and Lauren Conrad when they each launched their own makeup brands.
All of these controversies led to him losing his ties with makeup brand Morphe, and YouTube temporarily demonetizing his videos.
According to a 2021 survey by Business Insider, James was voted the least popular beauty influencer.
He continues to post on social media, although his viewership has significantly decreased since his peak.
Image credits: jamescharles / Instagram
#5 The Try Guys
Ned Fulmer, one of the four founding members of popular YouTube channel The Try Guys, was widely known online as the “wife guy,” often publicly sharing his love for his wife Ariel.
In September 2022, Fulmer’s reputation shattered when he admitted to having an extramarital affair with a coworker at The Try Guys company.
The infidelity scandal surprised fans who had long seen him as a devoted family man.
Soon after, the group announced in a YouTube video titled what happened in October 2022, announcing that Fulmer was no longer employed by the company and would be edited out of future videos. Some footage featuring him was also deemed “unreleasable.”
The affair was also referenced in a Saturday Night Live sketch, which further drew criticism for failing to address the power dynamics involved between Ned and the employee.
Fulmer then stepped away from social media for three years to focus on his family life.
He has since sought couples therapy with his wife, working to rebuild trust and address the issues that led to the affair.
In September 2025, he announced his return to public life with a new podcast, Rock Bottom, where he plans to interview cancelled influencers and others confronting past mistakes.
However, the announcement was met with another wave of criticism, with one fan writing, “Still not holding himself accountable I see.”
“Tell him we said don’t come back!”
Image credits: The Try Guys / YouTube
#6 Belle Gibson
Belle Gibson was once one of Australia’s most celebrated wellness influencers, known for her popular app The Whole Pantry and a bestselling cookbook that promised to heal the body through clean eating and alternative therapies.
Her rise to fame was built on a personal claim, that she had survived terminal brain cancer through holistic treatments rather than conventional medicine.
But in 2015, Gibson’s empire crumbled when journalists exposed that her story was a complete fabrication.
Not only had she lied about having cancer, but she also failed to deliver on her promises to donate large sums of her profits to charities.
“None of it’s true. I am still jumping between what I think I know and what is reality,” Belle told Australia’s Women’s Weekly magazine.
In 2017, Australia’s federal court even fined Gibson 410,000 AUD or about $273,000.
The court found she had no reasonable basis for any of her cancer claims and had exploited vulnerable people searching for hope.
Authorities have since raided her home multiple times in efforts to recover the money, but as of 2025, the fine still remains unpaid.
As the controversy unfolded, Gibson completely disappeared from public life and has no active social media presence.
Image credits: Netflix
#7 Tati Westbrook
Tati Westbrook was one of YouTube’s biggest beauty influencers, known for her brand Halo Beauty, but in 2019, her career took a hit after a public feud with YouTuber James Charles.
The controversy began when Tati released a 43-minute video titled BYE SISTER, in which she accused James of being a bad friend and an egotist.
The fallout between the two was ignited when James promoted Sugar Bear Hair vitamins, a competitor of Tati’s, instead of her own brand.
In the video, she also made serious accusations about his behavior, alleging that he had used his money and fame to manipulate straight men into romantic relationships.
The video instantly went viral, causing James to lose 3 million YouTube followers at the time.
Soon many viewers began questioning Tati’s intentions as details emerged about how she had allegedly been influenced by other creators like Jeffree Star and Shane Dawson in her decision to make the video.
By 2020, Tati released a follow-up video attempting to clarify her side of the story and encourage her audience to move past the drama.
That same year, she and her husband James Westbrook were sued by former business partner Clark Swanson for breach of contract, gross negligence, and fraudulent inducement regarding Halo Beauty.
The lawsuit alleged that the couple mismanaged the company, launched separate products without Clark’s knowledge, and overpromised endorsements from other influencers.
The lawsuit was settled privately four years later, and Westbrook left the beauty industry to launch another brand, Tati Beauty, in 2024.
Despite the past scandals, Tati has managed to maintain a large following on YouTube and regularly posts on the platform.
Image credits: Ezra Fitzgerald / YouTube
#8 Trisha Paytas
Trisha Paytas became a household name through their channel blndsundoll4mj, which they launched in 2007.
Over the years, Paytas has been involved in numerous public disputes and controversies.
In 2019, they were involved in a public feud with James Charles, criticizing him for being “creepy” and “predatory” in his friendship with a 16-year-old Charli D’Amelio in a now-deleted TikTok video.
They also sparked criticism over their complex history with gender and identity.
Paytas has publicly shifted pronouns, identifying at different times as transgender and then non-binary, while making controversial statements that offended parts of the LGBTQ+ community.
At one point, they even claimed to identify as a “chicken nugget,” which drew widespread backlash.
Paytas has also faced serious criticism for racist and inappropriate content, including dressing as various racial groups, releasing a song called Jungle Fever comparing people of color to monkeys, using racial slurs multiple times, and posting adult content involving family members.
They have also mocked mental illness, roleplayed and created controversial content about physical harassment, and bullied underage internet personalities like the D’Amelio sisters.
Despite these scandals, in 2023, Paytas launched the solo podcast Just Trish, where they share personal insights and discuss influencer drama.
They continue to post on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube while performing sold-out shows.
Reflecting on the cancellations and their comeback, in a 2025 interview Paytas told Elle, “I feel like I’m always going to just keep going forward, and that’s all I can do. I’m just happy to keep going.”
Image credits: trishapaytas / Instagram
#9 Mikayla Nogueira
Mikayla Nogueira, one of TikTok’s biggest beauty influencers, first blew up for her makeup tutorials but has since become just as popular for her controversies.
Her biggest drama came in 2023 when she was accused of gaslighting followers by allegedly wearing false eyelashes while promoting L’Oréal’s $14.99 Telescopic mascara.
In the now-viral video, Mikayla raved that the mascara made her lashes look like falsies, but critics pointed out a suspicious cut in the footage and called her out for misleading ads.
Even Jeffree Star chimed in, calling the results “bizarre” and suggesting something was “extra” on her lashes.
She’s also faced accusations of editing her body in videos, giving fake product reviews, and even using TikTok filters to exaggerate results during paid promotions.
Fans questioned her authenticity further after an old college video surfaced showing her speaking in a neutral accent, a stark contrast to her raspy Southern drawl.
One viewer wrote, “Mikayla’s Lies Part. Infinity.”
Despite the backlash, Nogueira has over 14 million followers and still remains massive on all social media platforms.
Image credits: mikaylajmakeup / Instagram
#10 Jeffree Star
The renowned makeup mogul Jeffree Star didn’t face just one scandal, nor did his career collapse overnight; it tanked over the course of many years.
Accusations surfaced that Star was both racist and a bad friend to fellow YouTubers Laura Lee, Manny Gutierrez, Nikita Dragun, and Gabriel Zamora.
In a now-deleted X post, Zamora had shared, “Honey, every time I was around him he would constantly say racist things about black people.”
Addressing the racism allegations, Jeffree uploaded a YouTube video titled RACISM.
“I don’t know who that person was. I know who I am today, but I do not know who that person was.”
However, fans were not convinced, nor were several other beauty content creators.
The backlash escalated when one of his biggest sponsors at the time, beauty brand Morphe, cut ties with him.
The final blow came in 2020, when former friends and associates accused the beauty influencer of physical harassment and exploitation.
This led to thousands of fans unfollowing him across social media.
His track record has not improved since, as he later angered netizens by dismissing non-binary pronouns such as they/them as “stupid.”
Image credits: jeffreestar / Instagram
#11 Brittany Dawn Nelson
Brittany Dawn Nelson, at the peak of her stardom, sold thousands of online health and fitness plans priced between $92 and $300 in 2014.
Marketed as a personal coach and “your biggest supporter,” she promised customized programs to her clients.
However, it was later discovered that many had received identical workout and meal plans.
The backlash intensified, especially from customers with eating challenges who felt misled by her programs.
In 2019, during an appearance on Good Morning America, Brittany apologized to her followers and claimed to “take full responsibility” for her “mistake.”
Three years later, in 2022, the controversy snowballed into a lawsuit from the state of Texas, accusing her of deceptive practices, particularly toward clients with special dietary needs.
She eventually settled the case by paying $400,000 in penalties, avoiding a trial.
Afterward, she rebranded herself from fitness influencer to faith-based creator, launching a ministry called She Lives Freed, which offered tickets to self-run weekend religious conferences.
She now runs a podcast, Chiseled and Called, where in a March 2023 episode she described herself as a victim of “cancel culture” and society’s desire to “see an influencer crumble.”
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Image credits: realbrittanydawn / Instagram