What to Know
Back in April 2024, Carlos and Alexa PenaVega announced that their fourth child was stillborn. At the time, the couple wrote, “After a beautiful and peaceful delivery our daughter ‘Indy’ was born at rest. It has been a painful journey. But in the pain we have found peace. God continues to comfort and hold us in his arms.” During a recent appearance on The Upload, the Big Time Rush actor and Spy Kids actress spoke about the loss of their daughter and how they’ve navigated the grief. At one point, Carlos compared the loss of their daughter to the death of Charlie Kirk, sparking backlash (and some confusion) online.
Carlos spoke about the impact that the loss had on him and his wife.
The couple explained that they also befriended another family who had lost their 10-year-old son, Taven. Alexa described “walking through that experience with them” as extremely “heartbreaking and hard.” Carlos compared their friends’ loss of their child Taven to the loss of their daughter Indy, and compared both of them to Charlie, the right-wing political activist who was shot and killed in September 2025.
“I think what’s been amazing is that Taven, and then even our Indy, and then even recently, Charlie Kirk,” Carlos said on the podcast. “Like these guys, their lives have been so much more impactful after.”
He explained that it’s also prompted him to think about his own legacy. “I look at my life, and I go if this ceiling were to… if that were to fall on me right now and I’m gone… I want to make sure whatever happens to me, that when I do go, man, it would be awesome that my life is as impactful, if not more, afterwards,” Carlos said.
But on social media, people were confused (and surprised) by the comparison.
“I’m sorry WHAT?!?” one person on X wrote after seeing Carlos compare his fourth child to Charlie. A lot of critics failed to understand why Carlos would see any similarities between his baby and the Turning Point USA co-founder. Another critic commented, “Yikes!! how can anyone compare losing a child to CK’s death.” Someone else reacted to Carlos’s comments with, “What an incredibly odd thing to say.”
While many critics found the comparison “weird” and “gross,” others defended Carlos. “Everyone processes grief differently, even if the wording comes across strange,” one Redditor wrote in his defense.
ALSO READ: Mom Sells Stillborn’s Crib And A Week Later The Buyer Returns It Restructured Into A Bench
