NEW YORK — YouTube’s biggest star MrBeast is facing complaints about the safety of contestants in the preliminary round of his ambitious game show “Beast Games,” which features 1,000 contestants hoping for a $5 million grand prize.
Some contestants complained online and to other YouTube influencers that they did not have regular access to food, water and medication during the initial production at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, and that some contestants were injured during production.
A spokesperson for MrBeast said its team is reviewing the process and soliciting feedback from participants ahead of the next phase of production in Toronto.
The stakes for “Beast Games” are not only high for the contestants, but for MrBeast himself, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, as well as the recipients of his brand of “acrobatic philanthropy,” which often involves direct cash donations. or even houses. Complaints about the production of “Beast Games” coincide with Donaldson’s. acknowledgment this week that he used racial and homophobic slurs years ago, in recordings he made when he was a teenager.
The show, which has already been picked up by Amazon Prime Video to air in 240 countries, is part of Donaldson’s cultural expansion beyond YouTube – where his channel has 307 million subscribers, including countless young consumers who already buy his line of sweets Feastables or the burgers that bear its name.
“My goal is to make the best show possible and prove that YouTubers and creators can be successful on other platforms,” Donaldson said in a statement. March press release of the Amazon.
Donaldson’s companies lined up 2,000 people to participate in a sort of initial tryout at Allegiant Stadium in July, with 1,000 of them likely advancing to the actual show. Amazon Prime Video was not involved and did not respond to a request for comment.
A spokesman for MrBeast said on Friday that filming the promotional video was “unfortunately complicated” by extreme weather, the widespread outage of CrowdStrike that caused global technological havoc and “other unexpected logistical and communications problems.”
“We have taken steps to ensure we learn from this experience and are thrilled to welcome hundreds of men and women to the world’s biggest game show in history,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
MrBeast offered eliminated contestants $1,000 upon leaving the competition and the spokesperson said most of those remaining in the running are ready to continue.
Some contestants expected challenges similar to those on the dystopian Netflix show “Squid Game,” a fictional series — and eventual reality game show — where people deeply in debt compete for millions in high-stakes children’s games.
The Associated Press reached out to several competitors about “Beast Games,” but most did not respond or declined to speak on the record because they had signed nondisclosure agreements.
Scott Leopold, a 53-year-old father from Austin, Texas, told the AP he thought he was competing in the real “Beast Games,” not a precursor to the show. He said he felt misled about his chances of winning and that the competition in Las Vegas would not be broadcast on Amazon Prime Video.
He said Donaldson shouldn’t be a “villain” but added that “an apology would go a long way.”
“All I can conclude is that he was in over his head,” Leopold said. “There were a lot of people and I don’t think he knew how to handle the situation.”
Nancy Libby, a Navy veteran from California who said she was one of the last people eliminated, told the AP she signed up after seeing a casting call on Facebook. Her daughters watch MrBeast videos, she said, and she was already planning to miss work anyway.
Conditions on set met his expectations. Libby said she was instructed in advance by recruiters to watch previous MrBeast challenges to gain some understanding of the experience. Because of that, she said, she wasn’t surprised by the oatmeal meals and nights spent sleeping on the floor.
Libby said “crowd control” was sometimes an issue and that more staff could help ensure contestants didn’t harm their peers. But Libby said the MrBeast team seemed to take safety seriously and that she only witnessed rude behavior from outside contractors.
“Sometimes when you manage new things, things come up that you can’t predict,” Libby said. “I think the model was there for really good competition.”
MrBeast has also had some contentious relationships with his contractors. One of Donaldson’s companies sued and was later countersued by a supplier he worked with on “MrBeast Burger,” which was widely criticized.
Fans have also previously complained about not receiving merchandise ordered from MrBeast or receiving the wrong items or sizes. A supplier working with MrBeast to ship some of these recognized orders in a posting online last year that they disappointed the fan.
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