“Billie Eilish Got Me Deported,” Claims Activist Stopped at Los Angeles Airport Over Mansion Protest
Drew Pavlou deported from US? Influencer says Billie Eilish ‘contacted DHS’ about his campaign to move into her LA home (@DrewPavlou/X)
An Australian activist’s attempt to stage a political protest targeting pop star Billie Eilish ended with his detention at Los Angeles International Airport and removal from the United States.
Drew Pavlou said he was denied entry after publicly announcing plans to travel to California and stage a protest outside Eilish’s Malibu home. The plan followed remarks the singer made during her acceptance speech at the February 1 Grammy Awards ceremony criticizing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
After the speech, Pavlou announced online that he intended to travel to California and “move into” Eilish’s beachfront property as political performance art. He later clarified that he planned to camp outside the gated residence and leave if formally asked, describing the effort as a test of the logic behind Eilish’s comments about land and migration.
Exciting news: I’ve decided to move into Billie Eilish’s $6 million Malibu beachfront mansion because no human being is illegal on stolen land.
Thank you Billie for your generosity. pic.twitter.com/1egsPPKs5i
— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) February 2, 2026
Pavlou initially raised about $3,000 through a GoFundMe campaign before it was removed, after which he moved fundraising to another platform and purchased a flight to Los Angeles.
Instead of entering the country, Pavlou said he was detained upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport for roughly 30 hours and questioned by immigration officials. According to his account, officers asked whether he intended to trespass on Eilish’s property, attempt to contact her, or carry out confrontational activism during his visit. He was also questioned about past online posts and a 2022 incident in London involving a bomb threat that he says authorities determined was fabricated in his name.
Pavlou said officials told him he should have applied for a different visa category, noting he was scheduled to appear later in February on a Texas-based media program. He said he was not formally banned from returning to the United States but was placed on a return flight to Sydney and advised to reapply with the appropriate visa in the future.
DREW PERFORMANCE ART UPDATE
Billie Eilish got me deported from the US – I think her legal team contacted DHS
I spent 30 hours at LAX immigration trying to explain that my shit posts were just a joke and that I didn’t actually plan to personally move into her mansion
Honestly… https://t.co/R4ynQEor3c pic.twitter.com/8eVCcBE5Jr
— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) February 15, 2026
Billie Eilish got me deported from the US
I spent 30 hours in custody at LAX trying to explain to the agents that my shitposts about moving into her mansion on stolen land were just a joke
Her lawyers seem to have actually compiled a dossier on me because the agents were asking… pic.twitter.com/y38z3EEBRH
— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) February 15, 2026
In social media posts after his removal, Pavlou characterized the situation as a misunderstanding and maintained that his statements about occupying the singer’s property were intended as satire rather than a literal plan. He also suggested that his activism history may have contributed to the scrutiny he received at the border.
Separately, reporting by the Daily Mail noted that representatives of the Tongva people — whose ancestral lands include much of the Los Angeles Basin — said Eilish’s property is located on traditional Tongva territory. A tribal spokesperson said the singer had not contacted the tribe directly regarding the land and expressed hope that future public statements would reference the Tongva specifically when discussing the region’s history.
The Tongva people have lived in the Los Angeles Basin and nearby islands for thousands of years, including areas now encompassing Los Angeles County and parts of Orange County.
About Post Author
