Jimmy Donaldson, known online as MrBeast, has recently been facing backlash over reports of conditions on preliminary filming for his Amazon show.
Don Arnold/Getty Images
YouTube's biggest creator has been embroiled in a string of recent controversies.
MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is the top creator on YouTube with 308 million subscribers.
His viral videos have hundreds of millions of views, from recreating "Squid Game" (641 million views) to spending 50 hours buried alive (323 million views).
Donaldson, 26, has generally avoided the controversies that have felled some of his peers during his 12 years online.
But recently, that's begun to change, with fans and video participants speaking out against the star.
In the past few weeks, Donaldson and his team have faced three major controversies: The New York Times reported on safety concerns around the production of his upcoming show "Beast Games," which has led to speculation among some Amazon insiders about potential negative repercussions; Donaldson cut ties with a former employee who was accused of sending inappropriate messages to a minor; and Donaldson's past use of racist and homophobic slurs resurfaced online.
The online discourse around these events has circulated on TikTok and Reddit. It even appears to have impacted the performance of Donaldson's most recent video, which at the time of writing had 1.9 million dislikes on YouTube to 3.8 million likes. This is significantly more dislikes than Donaldson generally receives on videos. For instance, his most popular video, where he recreated "Squid Game," only has 151,000 dislikes to 18 million likes.
Earlier this year, Amazon Prime Video announced that it had done a deal with Donaldson to produce a competition show. Participants would compete in challenges for the chance to win $5 million. Preliminary production began in July with over 2,000 participants.
Anonymous reports on TikTok began to circulate in recent weeks about the filming conditions.
Then, last week, The New York Times published an article citing "over a dozen" participants who said they didn't receive enough food or medical care during the preliminary production, and that some competitors suffered injuries. (One participant said to AP News that the on-set conditions met her expectations, however.)
"Beast Games" was supposed to help kick-start Amazon's new effort to sell ads into Prime Video with a show that appeals to families and advertisers. But the negative press coverage has led to some chatter among Amazon entertainment insiders about whether the coverage will scare away advertisers and if there will be consequences for Lauren Anderson, the exec who oversees unscripted programming for Amazon MGM Studios. It has also led to some questions about how this could happen, with Amazon having deep reality show expertise through its acquisition of MGM, which has hits like "Shark Tank" and "Survivor."
"It's going to be a mess," said one Amazon insider, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the show. Another insider said producers are already talking about making a Fyre Fest-like documentary about "Beast Games."
"The MrBeast promotional video shoot, which included over 2,000 participants, was unfortunately complicated by the CrowdStrike incident, extreme weather, and other unexpected logistical and communications issues, which we are currently reviewing, but we are grateful that virtually all of those invited to Toronto for our next production have enthusiastically accepted our invitation," a spokesperson for Donaldson said. "We have communicated directly with 97% of the 2000 people who attended to ask for feedback, have launched a formal review of the process, and have taken steps to ensure that we learn from this experience and we are excited to welcome hundreds of men and women to the world's largest game show in history."
Amazon declined to comment.
Last month, unrelated to the production of the reality competition, one of Donaldson's oldest friends and now-former employee, Ava Tyson, was accused of messaging an underage fan when Tyson was 20. Donaldson posted on X (formally Twitter) that his team would investigate the claims.
"That said, I've seen enough online and taken immediate action to remove Ava from the company, my channel, and any association with MrBeast," Donaldson said last month. "I do not condone or support any of the inappropriate actions."
"I would like to apologize for any of my past behavior or comments if it hurt or offended anyone," Tyson said in a statement last month.
Beyond these new controversies, Donaldson has faced further criticism for an old video clip of him making racist and homophobic comments that has recirculated on social media.
"When Jimmy was a teenager he acted like many kids and used inappropriate language while trying to be funny," a spokesperson for Donaldson said. "Over the years he has repeatedly apologized and has learned that increasing influence comes with increased responsibility to be more aware and more sensitive to the power of language. After making some bad jokes and other mistakes when he was younger, as an adult he has focused on engaging with the MrBeast community to work together on making a positive impact around the world."
So what happens next? It's common for online controversies to blow over, which could happen for Donaldson. That said, if the backlash reaches a point where brands like Amazon start to rethink their relationships with him, it could lead to a much bigger fallout.
If you know more about MrBeast's Amazon show or production conditions, email the author at aperelli@insider.com.
