Sporting a chiseled jawline and muscular physique, Connor Murphy was once one of YouTube’s best-known fitness personalities. He still has 2.3 million YouTube subscribers and around 380,000 fans on Instagram but his following is in decline. Followers have also been worried about his mental health.
Over time, Murphy’s videos took a sharp turn. Instead of fitness pranks and physique content, he began posting more unusual videos, including content about spirituality, psychedelics and drinking bodily fluids. Business Insider reported that in 2021 he posted videos titled “RIP Connor Murphy” and “Connor Murphy’s Final Words,” which worried viewers, friends and family.
Murphy has publicly said he spent time being psychologically evaluated. Business Insider reported that after a concerning video in 2020, Murphy said police found him near Venice Beach and he was held at UCLA Medical Center for more than two weeks.
Ayahuasca
YouTuber Patrick Lyons stated Connor consumed Ayahuasca for the first time in May 2020. It’s a powerful psychedelic that is illegal in most countries. When ingested, the drug can cause hallucinations and what some describe as “ego death” – which some observers pointed to when trying to explain his erratic behaviour.
Alongside altering a person’s perception of time and emotions, psychedelics affect all of the senses. Initially, Connor Murphy said he was taking Ayahuasca for religious reasons. He even claimed to have reached a point of enlightenment, at which he stopped doing funny pranks and began doing mundane ones.
Hair loss
At first, Murphy insisted his thinning hair was hereditary. Some viewers speculated he may not have been getting enough nutrients, since healthy hair relies on a particular combination of nutrients, and substance abuse can strip the body of these essentials, leaving thinning or greying hair.
Addiction and Hair Loss
Addiction has been linked to hair loss as one of its more noticeable side effects. Hair cycles can be disrupted by drugs such as hallucinogens, which can push follicles into premature rest or halt cell activity altogether, causing noticeable hair loss with regular, extended use. Some viewers instead believe any hair loss was exaggerated, or attributable to steroid use.
Recent Uploads
Despite his strange behavior over the last few years, at one point it did appear the old Connor Murphy was slowly returning. Sadly, it wasn’t the case as more strange videos were released. On the plus side, his physique has improved and the hair looks better. Fans will have noticed, he now supports a “gigachad jaw” which he claims was obtained using jawline chewing gum, most likely he got jawline filler.
Arrested in Thailand
Connor had relocated to Pattaya, Thailand, where his story took its most serious turn. On May 1, 2024, he was arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend at their home. According to reporting from the Pattaya Mail, his 20-year-old girlfriend, named as Kanittha, was woken by the sound of breaking glass and found Murphy bleeding and shouting incoherently. She alleged he then attacked her with a golf club, prompting her and her younger sister to flee through a window before a maid contacted police.
One of Murphy’s friends claimed the incident had been staged for a YouTube video, but police rejected this, pointing to a neighbour’s CCTV footage that showed him behaving incoherently before the attack. Reports described extensive damage to the property.
What is he Doing Now?
In recent years, Murphy has continued posting online, but his content has moved far away from the fitness-prank videos that built his audience. His newer uploads lean more into looksmaxxing, personal commentary and unusual skits.
He has also launched a venture he calls the “Natty Plus Protocol,” focused on natural bodybuilding, reportedly developed in connection with Tony Huge. Whether this marks genuine stability or simply the latest chapter in an unpredictable saga remains to be seen.
While some fans still follow him out of curiosity, others remain concerned about the direction of his content and wellbeing.
