Taylor Lorenz Laughs Off Obsession With ‘Handsome’ Luigi Mangione to CNN: He Seems ‘Morally Good – Which is Hard to Find’

Independent journalist Taylor Lorenz addressed the obsession of some women with alleged Brian Thompson assassin Luigi Mangione, brushing off the media outrage surrounding his cult following as performative and out of touch.

Lorenz sat down with CNN’s MisinfoNation host Donie O’Sullivan for Sunday’s episode of the series. O’Sullivan shared a snippet of the conversation to his X account early Sunday morning, showing Lorenz speaking candidly about why she believes Mangione’s actions – and his looks – have struck a nerve with fans of the alleged assassin.

“To see these millionaire media pundits on TV clutching their pearls about someone stanning a murderer when this is the United States of America,” Lorenz said, “As if we don’t lionize criminals, as if we don’t have, you know, we don’t stan murderers of all sorts, and we can give them Netflix shows. There’s a huge disconnect between the narratives and the angles that mainstream media pushes and what the American public feels.”

When O’Sullivan asked about the groups of women who have gathered outside Mangione’s court hearings in New York, Lorenz laughed.

“You’re going to see women especially that feel like, Oh my God, right? Like, here’s this man who’s revolutionary, who’s famous, who’s handsome, who is young, who’s smart,” she said. “He’s a person that seems like this morally good man, which is hard to find.”

O’Sullivan quipped, “Yeah, I just realized women will literally date an assassin before they swipe right on me. That’s where we’re at.”

The two agreed sympathy for Mangione was not unlike fandom for supporters of President Donald Trump.

“I totally agree,” Lorenz said. “They want somebody to take on this system. They want someone to tear down these barbaric establishment institutions.”

Mangione, 31, was arrested last December for the assassination of Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare.

The slaying ignited a firestorm of commentary, particularly from progressives frustrated with the state of the American healthcare system. But perhaps no one drew more backlash than Lorenz.

Shortly after the killing, Lorenz went viral for saying she felt “joy” after hearing the news of Thompson’s death.

She later clarified the remark was an observation about public sentiment, not a personal endorsement of violence.

O’Sullivan’s interview with Lorenz will air in its entirety Sunday night on CNN.