Daily Wire host Candace Owens sat down with controversial social media influencer Andrew Tate for an explosive interview released Friday.
During the three-hour sit-down, Owens challenges Tate to answer for some of his most objectionable moments, including his part in filming a pornographic video and running an adult webcam business. The two also discuss topics such as abortion, pornography, transgenderism, and therapy culture.
Owens pushed Tate to explain his past mistakes, and while he expressed embarrassment and regret, he never offered an apology for the adult webcam business or the pornographic video.
“I’m not the kind of person that’s going to sit and apologize for his past. I believe all is well that ends well,” Tate told Owens. “I believe we’re humans, and we grow and we learn. I’d be a fool and I’d be disingenuous to sit here and say I was sorry for something I did in the past, and I’m not going to do that.”
At one point in the interview, Tate emphasized that he doesn’t view himself as a conservative.
“I would never consider myself a conservative from that standpoint. … I don’t wake up and stand there as a conservative figure,” he said.
The former kickboxer also talked about his views on masculinity during the interview and gave his thoughts on why so many young men and boys are drawn to his brazen personality. During the interview, Owens asked Tate about how he handles the popularity and power he has gained.
“Power and responsibility go hand-in-hand, and I do believe that I now have a huge platform, and with young boys, they’re exceptionally interested in my case,” Tate said. “I do believe to a degree I’m an anti-hero. I do believe that the more I’m attacked, the more credibility is given to me in the eyes of my fans.”
Tate, 36, is an American-British viral internet personality with the nickname “Top G,” who is known for his luxurious lifestyle and boasts over seven million followers on Twitter. He became well-known after being removed from Britain’s “Big Brother,” a reality TV show, as reported by the BBC. Since then, he’s grown in popularity and has been criticized by many on both the Left and Right for holding to a brash form of manliness that neglects the traditional definitions of masculine virtue.
In June, Tate made international headlines when he and his brother Tristan were indicted by a Romanian court on charges of rape, forming an organized crime ring to sexually exploit women, and human trafficking. Prosecutors allege Andrew and Tristan began operating a human trafficking ring in 2021, luring seven alleged victims into Romania.
They claim the accused used the “loverboy method,” which means they misled the women into thinking they were in an actual romantic relationship, NBC News reported. Prosecutors also allege Tate and the others coerced the women into taking part in pornography that was later shared on social media, the BBC notes.
The two were initially arrested — along with two alleged co-conspirators — in December and detained in jail until March, when they were placed under house arrest. Tate, his brother, and the two alleged co-conspirators deny all the allegations.