Influencer Ava Louise, who went viral after licking an airplane toilet seat for her “coronavirus challenge,” opened up about the controversial video in a wild new interview with Dr. Phil.
On the episode, which aired Thursday, the 21-year-old TikTok star and self-described “skinny legend” went head-to-head with the television therapist, who confronted Louise about the “unhygienic” challenge and why she decided to attend spring break in Miami amid a global pandemic.
From the get-go, Louise didn’t hold anything back — and neither did Dr. Phil, who called the college student “ignorant,” “spoiled” and “entitled” during the virtual interview.
After introducing the aspiring singer, who first appeared on the talk show last year, Louise revealed she created the challenge to make headlines because the deadly virus — which has infected more than half a million people worldwide — was getting more attention than she was.
“I was, like, really annoyed that corona was getting more publicity than me,” she said. “One, I had way dirtier things in my mouth. Two, I bleached [the toilet.] Three, private plane. I flew down on my sugar daddy’s plane with my best friend. So really, it wasn’t that dirty. I wasn’t putting myself or anyone else at risk.”
“So you lied to people?” Dr. Phil asked the influencer, who replied, “Yeah, I think that’s what the media is doing I think with this entire virus.”
Louise also called the TikTok video a “social experiment” and admitted that she did it all for “clout” as no one is covering her “viral” song.
“It’s funny because I created the fake news myself,” she told Dr. Phil, adding that she feels like she “represents” Gen Z. “I basically took things that your generation and boomers are scared of and I capitalized off of it.”
When Dr. Phil asked Louise if she’s concerned about putting people at risk by going outside and perpetuating the spread of the virus, Louise suggested the entire pandemic is a hoax and said she “wouldn’t be surprised” if Dr. Phil is “a part of the Illuminati.”
“I just don’t think that this is as concerning as possibly as it could be, because I don’t have coronavirus,” Louise explained. “I don’t have any symptoms. No one I know has symptoms.”
“I was with thousands of people at Spring Break, I was kissing people, I was acting out, I was being promiscuous … and nothing happened,” she said. “You’re calling me selfish? But like you’re the ones who are concerned because you’re concerned about yourselves because you’re the ones who could die.” (The latest data from the CDC indicates that 20 percent of people diagnosed with COVID-19 in the US who required hospitalization were from the ages of 20 to 44 years old.)
“You know what’s ridiculously irresponsible and selfish is that your generation only cares about this virus because it affects you,” she later added. “You’re blowing this pandemic to crazy proportions, instilling fear in the nation, because you feel like it affects boomers.”
“Are you saying this to get attention?” Dr. Phil bluntly asked. “You can’t be this ignorant!”
Louise then pointed out how there were “literal reports in the mainstream media” about how cocaine “could cure” coronavirus. “I wouldn’t be surprised because there was a lot of cocaine use on spring break and no one had it,” she said.
While Dr. Phil remained fairly calm, Louise continued to become more fired up and threatened to cough on him. (She later tweeted she was “wasted” during the interview.
“If you infect one person that loses their life, is it worth it for you to have this attention?” Dr. Phil asked.
“Yeah,” Louise said, beginning to raise her voice. “I’m hearing you talk and you’re like, ‘Oh, you’re going to kill somebody’ like you know what? I’ll pull up and I’ll cough on you. Like I’m just tired of it! This is ridiculous!”
“What’s ridiculous is your spoiled and entitled attitude,” Dr. Phil fired back.
Though he explained the “danger” of the coronavirus and laid out the data and facts, Louise said she “wasn’t buying it.”
Dr. Phil then concluded, “What you’re saying is infuriating the people who are losing loved ones.”
Watch it all go down in the videos.
Got a story or a tip for us? Email TooFab editors at [email protected].
View Photos
Instagram
Demi, Alessandra and Ashley Do the #IStayHomeFor Challenge