Kyle Rittenhouse is back in the headlines after revealing he was hospitalized following what he said was a bite from a venomous brown recluse spider. The 23-year-old shared photos from a hospital bed on X this week, along with images of a swollen wound on his leg that he claimed came from the spider bite.
According to The Daily Beast, Rittenhouse addressed the situation with the same combative online tone that has defined much of his public persona since the 2020 Kenosha shootings. “The communists couldn’t take me out and i’ll be damned if I let a brown recluse take me out,” he wrote in one post before joking in another, “Disappointed I’m not Spider-Man now...”
He later followed up after media coverage of the incident, adding: “Good news: the spider is nolonger with us. But I am. You’re welcome.”
Brown recluse spiders are among the few medically significant spiders in North America, alongside the black widow. Their venom contains tissue-destroying toxins that can lead to blistering, necrosis, fever, nausea, and, in rare cases, systemic complications.
According to medical guidance from the Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital, most bites are not fatal in adults, but severe reactions can require immediate medical attention. Experts note that symptoms can worsen over the first 24 to 48 hours, especially if tissue damage develops around the bite site.
The spider itself has become something of a misunderstood internet villain over the years. Brown recluses are native primarily to the Midwest and southern United States and are known for hiding in dry, undisturbed places like garages, closets, woodpiles, and cardboard boxes.
Despite frequent public panic, arachnologists have repeatedly warned that many reported “brown recluse bites” are actually misdiagnosed skin infections or unrelated wounds. Medical experts say confirmed bites are relatively uncommon because the spiders are typically reclusive and avoid human interaction unless trapped against the skin.
Rittenhouse first became a national figure in 2020 after traveling to Kenosha, Wisconsin, during protests sparked by the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Armed with an AR-15-style rifle, the then-17-year-old shot three people, killing two. He was later acquitted on all charges after arguing self-defense during a nationally watched trial.
Since then, he has built a following among conservative and pro-Second Amendment audiences through media appearances, speaking engagements, and social media commentary.
