There are reality TV moments that entertain — and then there are moments that leave viewers in stunned silence. A clip from Next Gen NYC, Bravo’s latest Gen Z-fueled spin on urban glamour and interpersonal chaos, has triggered a tidal wave of backlash online after one of its most talked-about cast members, Charlie, delivered a jaw-dropping comment about his co-star Ariana... right in front of Ava Dash.
It starts off innocently enough. Charlie, slouched effortlessly against a black iron fence on a busy New York sidewalk, confides to Ava — daughter of fashion designer Rachel Roy and music mogul Damon Dash — that he's starting to see Ariana in a new light. “Ariana’s kinda growing on me,” he says, his tone casual but suggestive. Ava, ever poised and smiling, probes further. “Really? In what way? Do you have a crush on her now?” she asks, clearly curious.
But the conversation takes a sharp and unexpected turn. With a smirk creeping across his face, Charlie delivers a line that instantly changes the tone of the scene — and sparked furious debate across social media.
“Ehh… maybe I’ll try to f**k her lowkey 😈,” he replies, laughing slightly as if it were the most natural thing to say.
Ava, whose demeanor shifts ever so slightly, doesn't respond immediately — but her expression speaks volumes. What had been a moment of playful flirtation suddenly turned into an awkward confrontation with unfiltered male audacity.
The clip, which has now racked up hundreds of thousands of views and retweets, has become a lightning rod for criticism. Fans were quick to denounce Charlie's behavior as crude, misogynistic, and emblematic of a disturbing trend in modern dating culture. “He reduced admiration to sex in one sentence,” one viewer commented. “And he said it to her face like it was charming.”
Others pointed out how Ava, caught in the middle of the remark, handled the situation with grace and restraint. “You could see the exact moment she realized this wasn’t a compliment — it was just another guy being gross,” one TikTok user wrote.
Ariana, the subject of the remark, has yet to publicly react — but insiders say she was blindsided when the episode aired and found the comment “disrespectful and typical.” Whether or not she’ll confront Charlie remains to be seen, but if the show’s pattern holds, the drama is far from over.
As for Charlie? There’s been no apology, no clarification — and perhaps, no regret. If anything, he seems to embody the exact brand of chaotic, unfiltered male energy that Next Gen NYC thrives on. But in a cultural moment where respect and accountability are finally being demanded on-screen as much as off, viewers are making one thing clear: being “lowkey” doesn’t excuse being appalling.
This isn’t just a viral moment — it’s a line in the sand for how far reality TV can go before it stops being entertaining and starts becoming a mirror to everything wrong with how we talk about women.
