In the latest example of content creators being terrible human beings for views, streamer Natalie Reynolds has gone viral for daring a woman who couldn’t swim to jump into a lake for a stunt, only to run away laughing as the woman called for help.


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In the clip, the woman jumps in, and two men walk up the pier towards Reynolds directing her to leave before they move to help the woman; Reynolds does walk away, laughing at the cameraman and asking, “Who is that? What the fuck is going on?”



In a second clip, the woman can be heard shouting, “I can’t swim, I can only float!” while someone closer to Reynolds adds, “She could literally die,” while Reynolds begs them to stop because she’s seriously freaking out. Reynolds says “I’m going to fucking kill myself, she says she’s drowning,” before the group decides to flee the scene. In another clip, a fire truck can be seen heading towards the lake, and the Austin Fire Department confirmed that they responded to an emergency at Lady Bird Lake.



Reynolds had offered the woman $20 to jump in, and in a tweet responding to critics, she argued that the woman wanted to swim and “she got the help she needed and is fine.” Ignoring her excuses, social media users have continued to slam Reynolds for encouraging someone who can’t swim to jump into a lake for views, prioritizing content over someone’s safety and wellbeing.


Some users argued that the entire thing was staged, including one Twitter user who identified herself as a former lifeguard and argued that the way the woman dove into the water suggests she’s an experienced diver, and her reaction once in the water isn’t that of someone who can’t swim and is drowning. If that is the case and this entire thing was fake, then we should hear about Reynolds facing consequences for wasting the Austin Fire Department’s time.


Reynolds is no stranger to controversy, and indeed actively courts it as a way to get views; late last December, she went viral for wearing painted-on pants at the gym in lieu of actual workout clothes. Who wants to be known for having a positive impact on the world when you could be known for flashing everyone at the gym or nearly letting a woman drown for a bet instead?