Canadian YouTuber James Somerton Explores the Link Between Self-Harm and Abuse
James Somerton, a Canadian YouTuber recognized for his video essays on queer literature, had built a following of over 330,000 subscribers. However, his reputation came under scrutiny when Harris Brewis, known on YouTube as “hbomberguy,” accused him of repeated plagiarism. In response, Somerton uploaded a 43-minute apology video on his channel. Despite this, many viewers felt that his apology missed the mark. Continue reading to learn more about the situation.
Who is James Somerton?
James Somerton is a Canadian YouTuber who produces video essays focused on film, media, and LGBTQ+ issues. His content often tackles controversial and sensitive topics, such as social unrest, earning him a following of over 230,000 subscribers. Somerton frequently explores pop culture subjects like Harry Potter and Marvel comics. However, in December 2023, he was accused of plagiarizing content in some of his video essays.
Before Fame
Somerton began his YouTube journey in November 2013, with his first video exploring theories about Marvel comics.
Trivia
One of his notable works, “Killing Stalking and The Romancing of Abuse,” posted in April 2021, has amassed over 1.7 million views.
Family Life
He hails from Canada.
Associated With
Somerton shares similarities with Lindsay Ellis, another YouTuber renowned for her analytical video essays.
James Somerton Explores the Link Between Self-Harm and Abuse
Hey everyone, just a heads up that today’s video will dive into some pretty distressing topics that might not sit well with YouTube’s advertisers. A big thank you to my patrons for backing this video, and if you’re uncomfortable with discussions around suicide and abuse, you may want to skip this one.
Now, onto something I still find pretty absurd: James Somerton. Somerton was a popular YouTuber I hadn’t heard of until hbomberguy released a video calling him out for plagiarism. The exposé revealed Somerton’s extensive content theft, which he used to make substantial money from his videos, Patreon backers, and even fans who contributed to fundraisers for a short film that never saw the light of day.
That was quite a spectacle, but things took an even crazier turn when Somerton issued his apology. It was an absolute train wreck of an apology—rather than just owning up and moving on to something else, he tried to play the victim and persuade his audience to feel sorry for him and keep supporting him.
The backlash was swift, with so many people mocking the apology that he quickly took it down. He then posted another “apology,” which managed to be even worse, filled with blatantly flimsy excuses that were hard to take seriously.
As a mere human, I have a weakness for drama, and Somerton’s “apology” was too much of a spectacle for me to resist. I found it so amusing that I couldn’t hold back—I ended up filming a quick reaction for my alt channel. I wasn’t just reacting to Somerton, but also to some of his supporters who, despite being affected by his actions, were still giving him the benefit of the doubt.
Some were like, “Well, I can’t say for sure that he doesn’t have some condition that prevents him from getting a real job, but even if he does, that probably didn’t compel him to steal content from other creators.” As for me, I didn’t buy a single word of his explanation.
A few days after I uploaded that video, I began receiving strange comments like “Guess you got what you wanted?” and “Well, this did not age well.” As it turns out, on March 4, Somerton posted the following message on his Xitter account:
“If you’re seeing this, it means I scheduled it before ending things. I have videos lined up to release over the next few days—nothing new, just Nick’s portfolio of work to remain available. I’ve instructed that any revenue from these videos be donated to The Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. They’ve made great efforts to pull me back, but there’s simply nothing left for me anymore. I’ve lost everything… My only friend, my livelihood, my reputation…”
“And it’s all my fault. The world will be slightly better without me. Goodbye.”
He deleted the post almost immediately after it went up.
When I first saw that, my initial reaction was: “Oh, he’s faking a suicide attempt to manipulate people into feeling sorry for him and to turn them against hbomberguy for his legitimate criticism.”
Turns out, I was right. He didn’t actually go through with it, as we’ve confirmed just over two months later. So you can breathe easy. The way we found out he’s still alive (as of the time I’m filming this) is actually quite hilarious, so stick around until the end of the video, and I’ll spill the details.
Naturally, I kept quiet publicly during that time, even as more comments rolled in accusing me of pushing this man to the brink by mocking the blatant lies he had told before. Why did I stay silent? Because, unfortunately, I have a lot of experience dealing with this kind of manipulation.
My first encounter with it was in my first serious relationship, which began when I was 17 and he was at least 27. I say “at least” because I later found out he lied about nearly everything, including secretly dyeing his hair to appear younger, so his true age remains a mystery. Looking back, it was clearly a very unhealthy relationship. He was also my boss. We ended up moving in together after my roommate left and brought in a new tenant who not only refused to pay rent but also had a gun and threatened my life. In hindsight, it was a lot more chaos than any teenager should have to handle, but it’s what happened.
Three years into our deeply dysfunctional relationship, I woke up one day and realized it was time to get out. I hustled to graduate from college a semester early, and then I gave my 30-day notice—to my job, my apartment, and my boyfriend. Since leaving immediately wasn’t an option, my ex-boyfriend had several weeks to constantly remind me that if I left, he would kill himself.
He even resorted to cutting his arms to make his threats seem more convincing. I’ll admit, it made me feel awful. Given my own struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts, I took him seriously. At the time, it didn’t fully register that he was trying to manipulate me. Thankfully, he was such a nightmare that I realized even if he did follow through, it would still be better than me staying in that toxic relationship. So, I left—and surprise, surprise, he never actually attempted anything and is still alive today. For better or worse.
Years later, when I encountered a similar situation with a close friend, I sought advice from experts to understand whether this was truly a manipulation tactic and how I should handle it. Here’s what I discovered:
Yes, some individuals do use threats of self-harm or suicide as a manipulation tool without any real intention of following through. It’s challenging to determine how widespread this behavior is because experts largely rely on self-reported intentions and the tracking of suicidal threats and gestures to see how often they lead to an actual attempt.
Because of this uncertainty, the number one rule when dealing with a friend or loved one who makes threats or gestures of self-harm is to always treat them as if they are genuine. In my case, that doesn’t mean I should have stayed with my boyfriend—it means I should have contacted health services as I was leaving.
This approach can be complicated in the U.S., where calling for help sometimes results in law enforcement getting involved, and police can, unfortunately, escalate situations with suicidal individuals rather than providing proper care. However, I could have also reached out to his parents or his brother and let them handle the situation. The key takeaway is to always take such threats seriously and respond in the best way you can.
Of course, that approach applies to friends and family. When it comes to known manipulative individuals on YouTube, I personally believe that staying silent is perfectly acceptable.
On a slightly reassuring note, research has shown that suicide threats and gestures aren’t strong indicators of actual suicide attempts. A 2014 study involving 140 patients at a psychiatric facility in Spain found that individuals who threaten suicide and those who attempt it belong to two distinct groups with only some overlap. Similarly, a study of over 1,000 adolescents concluded that “suicide threats/gestures were not uniquely associated with suicide attempts, and youth who reported suicide threats/gestures alongside a history of self-harm or suicide plans were no more likely to have attempted suicide.”
Part of this disconnect might be because depression can actually inhibit the ability to act on suicidal thoughts—like wanting to die but lacking the energy even to get out of bed. One (unproven) theory suggests that starting antidepressants can be risky for a small subset of individuals, as these medications might boost energy levels before alleviating the suicidal thoughts, potentially enabling follow-through.
Another reason for the gap between threats and actual attempts is that some individuals make these threats with no real intention of acting on them. Reflecting on my ex-boyfriend, with the benefit of hindsight, I can confidently say his threats were purely manipulative. Research supports this, indicating that many abusers use suicide threats as a means of maintaining control over a partner trying to leave—a tactic known as “coercive control.”
An examination of 200 suicide cases revealed that “the use of suicidal behavior was…a calculated strategy by some men to maintain influence or control over women.”
In a similar vein, a 12-year study on domestic homicides in Ontario identified prior suicide threats or attempts as one of the key factors linked to such cases. This factor was found alongside others such as “a history of violence between the perpetrator and victim in 72% of cases, actual or impending separation, obsessive behavior, and the perpetrator’s depression.”
However, it’s important to remember that not everyone who threatens suicide without planning to act on it does so with malicious intent. Research involving individuals with borderline personality disorder has shown that for these individuals, “suicide threats are frequently linked to emotions stemming from interpersonal relationships. These threats may serve, although ineffectively, to manage the emotions triggered by these relationships and seek necessary support.”
Without proper treatment and understanding, someone might transition from using suicidal threats as a means of seeking support and managing emotions to employing them manipulatively in an abusive manner.
This complexity is why I hesitated to create this video. While I found the information helpful, I’m concerned that some might oversimplify it, thinking that all suicide threats are just manipulative tactics and should be ignored. If you take away just one clear message, let it be this: treat every threat or gesture of suicide as if it is serious. And if you need a more nuanced perspective, add this: if dealing with a known manipulative individual with whom you have no real relationship, you might choose to disregard it, especially if it later turns out they faked their suicide and used an alternate account for inappropriate posts. In such cases, ignoring their actions is a reasonable response.
James Somerton Response to Hbomberguy Plagiarism Accusations
James Somerton, a Canadian YouTuber famous for his video essays on queer literature, had built a following of over 330,000 subscribers when Harris Brewis, known as “hbomberguy” on YouTube, accused him of persistent plagiarism. Brewis presented these claims in a four-hour video, which has since amassed over 10 million views.
Brewis’ video provides a detailed examination of Somerton’s actions, showcasing multiple instances where Somerton appears to have copied passages verbatim from other sources, including articles, books, and online content. Additionally, the video points out cases where Somerton seems to have merely rephrased or restructured these borrowed materials, presenting them as his own original work.
After these revelations, Somerton’s YouTube subscriber count dropped sharply to 255,000. In response, he retreated from online platforms, removed his videos from public view, and deactivated his Patreon account, where supporters had been paying between $20 and $100 monthly for exclusive content.
Somerton subsequently posted a 43-minute apology video on his YouTube channel. However, many online critics felt that his apology was insufficient and unconvincing.
In his defense, Somerton explained that he used entire passages verbatim because he believed it was the best way to accurately represent others’ viewpoints. He argued that, given his own limitations in fully grasping other people’s experiences, presenting their words directly was his way of ensuring their perspectives were conveyed as authentically as possible.
Somerton explained in the video, “As a cis, white, gay man, no matter how much effort I put into being a good advocate, I can never fully grasp the experiences of other marginalized members of the queer community. This is why I chose to use their own words.” His apology video sparked a significant reaction on social media, quickly going viral.
Is James Somerton Alive?
(Update) On March 6th, Somerton’s associate, Nick, responded to the situation on Bluesky, reassuring followers that there was “nothing to worry about.” This led many to believe that Somerton was still alive, though some questioned the credibility of Nick’s statement due to the tweet’s minimal engagement.
On May 11th, Kat from the HBomberguy team confirmed that Somerton was “currently alive and physically safe” following a welfare check. She noted that no further details would be shared to respect his privacy.
A post on a forum by u/EnvironmentalEgg5034 asked for updates on Somerton’s condition, expressing concern for his safety. The response confirmed that he was safe and alive. Kat reiterated that while Somerton is physically safe, his mental state and future actions are unknown, and she urged respect for his privacy. Future posts about Somerton will be removed to maintain this privacy.
