Okay, let’s just rip the band-aid off, shall we? Ben Higgins – yeah, THAT Ben Higgins from Bachelor Nation, the one who always seemed kinda… nice? – he’s out here calling the rumored Tom Brady and Alix Earle New Year’s Eve hookup, or whatever it was, “icky.” Icky! That’s a strong word, especially coming from a guy who built a whole career on televised romantic drama. But you know what? He’s not wrong. At least, not entirely. And if I’m being honest, it kinda makes me wanna shout from the rooftops, “FINALLY, SOMEONE SAID IT!”

“Icky” and the Instagram Age-Gap

So, here’s the scoop, for those of you who aren’t glued to TikTok or Us Weekly (which, bless your pure hearts). There’s been this low-grade hum for a while about Alix Earle, the 25-year-old TikTok sensation, and Tom Brady, the 48-year-old retired GOAT of football. The whispers got LOUD after they were reportedly seen together – or at least in the same vicinity – over New Year’s Eve. And Ben Higgins, bless his reality TV heart, weighed in on his “Almost Famous” podcast with co-host Ashley Iaconetti. He just flat out said, “I think it’s not cool.”

Ashley, ever the curious one, immediately jumps to the age difference, asking if it’s because Earle is “too young.” And look, we can’t ignore it, right? We’re talking a 23-year age gap. Brady’s old enough to be her dad, basically. But Ben’s response? It’s not just the age. “Yeah but I think that’s like a thing now, I think it feels weird to me,” he said. And then, the kicker: “It feels like a headline grabber any time that [it] comes out somebody is dating, I feel icky about it because I just don’t love the idea of spending time or dating someone strictly for the idea of a headline.”

The Headline Grabber Angle

See? He said it! “Headline grabber.” And that, my friends, is where Ben and I are totally simpatico. Because yeah, the age thing is a factor, of course it is. It makes a lot of people raise an eyebrow. But Alix Earle isn’t exactly some ingenue who just stumbled onto the scene. She’s a savvy businesswoman who built an empire on social media, on being relatable and aspirational at the same time. She knows how the internet works. She knows how buzz works. And Tom Brady? He’s Tom Brady. He knows a thing or two about staying relevant, even in retirement. He just divorced Gisele, for crying out loud. The man is a walking headline.

So when these two – one a TikTok phenom, the other a sports legend fresh off a high-profile split – are suddenly, supposedly, hanging out around New Year’s, it just… it feels a little too perfectly timed, doesn’t it? It’s like a PR executive’s dream. All the clicks, all the chatter, all the “wait, what?!” moments. And that’s what Ben’s getting at with the “icky” thing. It’s not necessarily about whether they actually like each other (who knows, maybe they do!), but about the optics of it all. The cynical feeling that it’s less about genuine connection and more about staying in the algorithm.

But Wait, Isn’t This Just How Hollywood Works?

And here’s where I kinda get myself into a philosophical knot. Because, actually, Ben’s right. This is a thing now. It’s been a thing. Celebrities, influencers, public figures – they’ve always understood the value of a well-placed rumor, a strategic “sighting.” Think back to the classic Hollywood pairings that just happened to coincide with a movie release. Or the reality stars who conveniently find love right before their show airs. It’s PR 101, baby. The only difference now is that the internet amplifies it a million times over, and the players are younger, savvier, and often, their entire brand is their personal life.

“I feel icky about it because I just don’t love the idea of spending time or dating someone strictly for the idea of a headline.” – Ben Higgins

But then, doesn’t that make Ben’s “icky” comment a little… naive? Like, welcome to the jungle, Ben! This is how the game is played! If Alix Earle, who’s brilliant at this stuff, is using a rumored fling with Tom Brady to boost her profile even higher, can you really blame her? Is it icky or just good business? And is it fair to only level that “icky” label at the woman in the situation, when Brady is also getting a nice little bump in the public consciousness, reminding everyone he’s still a catch?

What This Actually Means

Here’s the thing, and this is where my opinion really kicks in: it’s not just about the age gap, and it’s not just about the headline grab. It’s about the feeling that nothing is sacred anymore. That even something as personal as dating, or falling in love, can be seen through the lens of strategy and branding. And maybe that’s what Ben Higgins is really tapping into, that little knot in our stomach that says, “man, I hope this isn’t just for show.”

Because if it is just for show, then it cheapens everything, doesn’t it? It makes us question every “romance” we see played out in the tabloids or on our feeds. It turns real human connection into content. And while Alix Earle is a genius at content creation, and Tom Brady is a legend who understands public perception, there’s a part of me, a hopeful, old-school part, that still wants to believe in genuine sparks, even for the ridiculously famous. So yeah, Ben, I get the “icky.” It’s that uneasy feeling that the line between genuine life and curated performance has just blurred a little too much, and we’re all just kind of watching it happen, wondering what’s real and what’s just really good PR.