Overview
- A Rolling Stone investigation published on Aug. 20 reported that Watts encouraged heavy ketamine and other drug use in relationships and included accounts from the family of his late ex, Katherine McCollough, and five former partners.
- McCollough died by suicide in March 2026 and her family and friends told Rolling Stone they believe her drug use increased while she was dating Watts and that his influence contributed to her decline.
- Following the investigation, multiple festival organizers removed Watts from their advertised lineups and a Bristol run with collaborator CAPYAC was canceled, and Greenbelt confirmed his removal.
- Comedy Bang! Bang! quietly omitted Watts’s improvised theme from its Aug. 24 episode, replacing it with a brief voice intro while the show and its host declined to comment publicly.
- Watts’s attorney called the reporting “dangerously false” and denied responsibility for McCollough’s death, and no criminal charges or official investigations have been reported so far, leaving the story centered on reputational and commercial fallout.