YouTuber 'MrBeast' says he was invited to go on Titan submersible before deadly trip
(WFLA) — YouTuber MrBeast said he declined a spot on the Titan submersible before the tragic trip that killed five people, according to a Sunday tweet.
The YouTuber and philanthropist, whose legal name is James Stephen "Jimmy" Donaldson, revealed he was invited earlier in the month, but he said no.
In the tweet, Donaldson posted a text message from an unknown sender saying, "The team would be stoked to have [him] along."
"Kind of scary that I could have been on it," Donaldson wrote.
Officials said OceanGate's Titan submersible imploded while visiting the wreckage of the Titanic, resulting in the deaths of OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush and four other people.
Nexstar contacted OceanGate for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Donaldson isn't the only one who declined a spot on the submersible.
Las Vegas businessman Jay Bloom said he and his son were offered seats at a discount but refused to go after expressing concerns over the vessel's safety.
Instead, his tickets went to Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son, Suleman Dawood, who were among those killed.
Donaldson has gained more than 150 million YouTube subscribers through his entertaining stunt videos, such as recreating a game show version of the popular Korean Netflix series “Squid Game” and giving the winner $456,000. He relies on corporate partners like Honey, TikTok and Quidd to pull off the stunts that have made him a celebrity.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.