Wild Boys – Part 9: Eternal Life

Podcast: Wild Boys
Host: Sam Mullins
Date: September 15, 2025
Produced by: Campside Media / Sony Music Entertainment

Episode Overview

The finale of Wild Boys finds Sam Mullins retracing the Horn brothers’ lives after their dramatic exit from Canada, exploring their philosophies, struggles, and surprising paths in adulthood. The episode centers on the search for meaning and the pursuit of "eternal life"—the literal quest for physical immortality by Rowan and Kyle Horn. Mullins asks what became of the so-called “bush boys” and finds a story about obsession, adaptation, and the ongoing impact of an extraordinary adolescence.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Aftermath: Rowan’s Return to the U.S. and Medical System Clashes

• Transition Back (01:04–04:01):
  • After being treated for orthorexia in Canada with marked improvement, Rowan is flown back to California where the American hospital system reverts to treating him as anorexic, misunderstanding his actual condition and enforcing rigid meal plans of unhealthy food.
  • Rowan’s mother, Diana, faces tight visitation rules; attempts to sneak in healthy food are quickly foiled.
• Isolation & Frustration:
  • Rowan reflects on feeling more isolated than ever and frustrated by the hospital's lack of flexibility.
    • “They forced me to eat it all in an hour period. It’s like, so stupid.” – Rowan (03:18)
  • Diana resorts to subterfuge to get her son the nourishment he needs, highlighting bureaucratic intransigence.

Family Under Siege

• Legal Battles (04:28–06:26):
  • The Horns are embroiled in a custody dispute with child protective services, fighting for Rowan’s care and battling mounting stress that leads Diana to a panic attack.
    • “I think I noticed for the first time in my life what it’s like to experience stress at a physical level.” – Diana Horn (04:51)
  • Ultimately, the family attains a court order to remove Rowan from what they see as a hospital actively impeding his recovery:
    • “My parents got a court order to have me removed from that hospital… because the hospital is actually interfering with my weight gain.” – Rowan Horn (06:18)

Reflections and Unspoken Gratitude

• Resolution in Vernon (07:00–07:44):
  • The boys’ lack of apology still resonates in Vernon, but Rowan eventually sends a meaningful thank-you email to Tammy, the woman who supported them early on.
    • "He nicely and just told me, like, something about me saving his life and how I was...their surrogate mother...he really did kind of acknowledge that. So just that was really impactful to me." – Tammy (07:00)

The Brothers’ Split and Search for Belonging

• Life Beyond Canada (08:42–10:53):
  • Upon returning to the U.S., for the first time, Rowan is apart from Kyle, who soon hitchhikes across Canada again.
    • “Let’s have you not be around Rowan...I don’t wanna...you know...this is fine, yeah. Okay, I’ll take some time away.” – Rowan (08:55)
• Rowan’s Adventures in Hawaii (10:13–13:49):
  • Rowan joins friends in Hawaii; a failed raw foodist business leads him to live freely on a fruit farm for nine months.
    • Parties, drum circles, and nudist culture push him well outside his comfort zone but also prompt philosophical reflection.
    • “Though it was very fun...it started to feel like, what am I accomplishing here for the world?” – Rowan (13:28)

Philosophical Obsession: The Pursuit of Eternal Life

• A Lifelong Mission Defined (13:49–16:25):
  • The brothers reunite and focus intensely on discovering a purpose, ultimately deciding: eternal life is the highest ideal.
    • “We figured out the one thing most worthy of committing our lives to...that’s eternal life.” – Rowan (14:37)
    • “Even if it’s a long shot...even if it’s considered crazy...if it’s that important, you just go for it.” – Rowan (15:00)
• Rowan’s YouTube Crusade (16:08–17:44):
  • He launches a YouTube channel promoting life extension, blending earnestness with eccentricity, and attracting a following.
    • “It’s your friendly neighborhood eternal life fan, Rowan Horn...I want you to realize how horrible death is…” – Rowan (16:08)
    • Content crosses ideological boundaries—pro-Trump, pro-BLM, anti-Muslim, climate change concern, Alanis Morissette fandom—making his worldview hard to pin down.
    • “I want to live forever. Don’t you want to live forever? Let’s all live forever.” – Rowan (17:32)
    • With Diana sometimes joining videos: “Sing along with us.” – Diana (17:51)

Transhumanism, the Immortality Bus, and Life on the Road

• Political Involvement (18:31–19:09):
  • Rowan volunteers as videographer for Zoltan Istvan, a 2016 presidential candidate of the Transhumanist Party, traveling across America on the “Immortality Bus”—a coffin-shaped RV aiming to publicize radical life extension.
    • “I’m about to board the immortality bus. This is it. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for.” – Rowan (19:09)
• Rowan’s Zeal and Fear of Death (20:23–23:03):
  • Rowan’s crusade is both hopeful and deeply anxious; his obsession is fueled by a lifelong fear of death, heightened by losing his spleen as a child.
    • “If you fly in a plane and that plane goes down, could be the end of your entire existence.” – Rowan (21:55)
    • “It’s gonna happen. I’m gonna will myself to do it…you can have power to will something into existence.” – Rowan (22:51)
  • Mullins highlights the paradox of rooting for someone everyone knows will inevitably fail—a mix of empathy and skepticism.

Trying—And Failing—At Conventional Success

• Entrepreneurial Missteps and Odd Jobs (26:43–28:04):
  • The brothers’ attempts at health food businesses and supplements fizzle, as Rowan feels uncomfortable monetizing his pursuits.
    • “I never felt fully comfortable in the role of, like, trying to make money from anything I do...” – Rowan (26:53)
  • Kyle works remotely, and Rowan contemplates joining him at a gerbil farm.
    • “This gerbil life chose me.” – Rowan (27:42)

Are the Horns Okay?

• A Friend’s Perspective (29:13–30:26):
  • Rebecca Wise, a close friend, insists the brothers have found peace and a kind of unconventional success, unburdened by mainstream expectations.
    • “They have, like, they don’t have a lot of stress...they really have so much wealth and abundance...they’re like kings.” – Rebecca Wise (29:59)

Legacy and Meaning

• Memories and Community Impact (30:43–31:03):
  • For the Horns, the ordeal is a “distant memory.” For Vernon, it’s a story about community and compassion.
    • “Whenever we see Tom Green, we make the reference right there.” – Rowan (30:43)
  • Mullins reflects on the dangers averted by the community’s actions, contrasting the weight of tragedy avoided with the relative mundanity of moving on.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Medical Mismatch:
  “They forced me to eat it all in an hour period. It’s like, so stupid.” – Rowan Horn [03:18]
• On Parental Helplessness:
  “I felt my body on fire...They said, 911, what’s your emergency?...Who do you want me to direct this emergency to? The doctors, the police, or the fire department?” – Diana Horn [05:03]
• On Newfound Purpose:
  “And so we decided that that’s eternal life.” – Rowan Horn [14:37]
• On Obsession for Longevity:
  “I think what I brought to it was a kind of obsession...not enough people focus on that as their life focus.” – Rowan Horn [15:25]
• YouTube Manifesto:
  “I want to live forever. Don’t you want to live forever?” – Rowan Horn [17:32]
• Self-Awareness & Vulnerability:
  “Just trying to help the world...I try to be perfect, you know, when you try to be perfect, you put a lot...” – Rowan Horn [23:39]
• A Friend’s Assessment:
  “In a way, they’re doing better than people who have...an extremely stressful job...In their level of...peace, they have peace, they have confidence.” – Rebecca Wise [29:17]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:42 – Introduction and content warning
• 01:04–04:01 – Rowan’s return to the U.S. hospital, family separation, and frustration with the system
• 04:28–06:26 – The Horns’ legal fight and eventual court victory
• 07:00–07:44 – Rowan’s thank-you to Vernon
• 08:42–10:53 – The brothers split, Kyle’s hitchhiking adventure, Rowan’s return to high school
• 10:13–13:49 – Rowan’s nine months in Hawaii, search for meaning
• 13:49–16:25 – Reunion and philosophical quest for eternal life
• 16:08–17:44 – Rowan’s YouTube campaign
• 18:31–19:09 – The Transhumanist Party and “Immortality Bus”
• 20:23–23:03 – Fear of death, obsessive safety, and vulnerability
• 26:43–28:04 – Failed health food ventures and the “gerbil farm”
• 29:13–30:26 – Rebecca Wise on the Horns’ welfare
• 30:43–31:03 – Reflections on memory and moving on

Final Reflections

• This last episode deftly illustrates how the Horn brothers’ pursuit of transcendence—amid setbacks, odd adventures, and very human frailty—echoes universal questions about purpose, survival, and meaning.
• The story of “eternal life” is not about escaping death so much as about grappling with life, loss, and a relentless quest for value beyond normal boundaries.
• Sam Mullins closes on a meditative note: because things ended well, the community can safely shelve the Wild Boys’ story. But had things turned out differently, it would have left a lasting scar instead of an eccentric memory.

For those interested in unconventional journeys, outsider philosophies, and the edge cases of compassion, this finale is both sobering and quietly inspiring—an empathetic coda to the saga of the Wild Boys.