Scandal facing the king of YouTube

With 500 million fans, a multi-million dollar personal fortune and a global business empire.

It will take a lot of work to replace YouTube’s biggest influencer Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast.

But a 54-page court document may be his toughest test yet.

Five female contestants on upcoming Prime Video show Beast Games Taking legal action against his production company MrB2024 and Amazon in Los Angeles.

The lawsuit has plunged the show, which bills itself as the biggest reality competition series ever, with 1,000 contestants vying for a $5m (£3.7m) prize during or after the show airs, into crisis.

The legal document’s many redacted pages include allegations that they “suffered uniquely and collectively” in an environment that “systematically fostered a culture of misogyny and sexism.”

It completely destroyed MrBeast’s image as one of the nicest people on the internet.

I reviewed the document, which noted that the contestants were “malnourished and overly fatigued.” It also said that the meals provided were “sporadic and scanty,” which “harmed the health and welfare of the contestants.”

In a section that has been redacted from public view for nearly all of the allegations, it said the defendants “created, permitted and fostered a culture, pattern and practice of sexual harassment, including in the form of a hostile work environment.”

As early as August, The New York Times interviewed more than a dozen people participants of the show (which has yet to be announced), and reported that “several people” on the set were hospitalized, with one person telling the newspaper he hadn’t eaten in more than 20 hours.

The contestants also claimed that they did not receive their medication in time.

The BBC has contacted MrBeast and Amazon – but he has yet to comment publicly.

So will these latest allegations hurt the popularity of the King of YouTube?

MrBeast has courted controversy multiple times this year, but has emerged unscathed each time.

In July, the 26-year-old American said that after his former partner Ava Kris Tyson was Accused of luring a teenager.

Ava denied the allegations but apologized for “unacceptable past behavior.”

MrBeast said he was “disgusted” by the “serious allegations”.

Later, further allegations about the company’s business practices emerged from an anonymous YouTube channel claiming to be a former employee of the company. The BBC has been unable to independently verify the allegations or the identity of this person.

Some of his charitable efforts — such as building wells in Africa and paying for surgeries for the visually and hearing-impaired — have drawn criticism for being exploitative.

“Deaf people like me deserve better than MrBeast’s latest motivational porn,” Last year someone told The Independent.

But his empire continues to grow. The day before the lawsuit broke on Wednesday, he announced he was teaming up with another celebrity, KSI and Logan Paul, to launch a new food line designed to challenge Lunchables.

As I wrote In an article about his meteoric rise last yearhe earned millions of dollars through hard work.

His videos are big-budget experiences, and his most popular video — with 652 million views — Recreating the Netflix hit show Squidward in real life The prize money is $456,000 (£342,000).

Most of his charitable acts have been less controversial, including gifts of houses, cash and cars, which have helped establish him as an internet good guy.

According to his website, he has delivered more than 25 million meals to the poor around the world.

People continue to flock to his social channels. In June, he had enough subscribers to YouTube channel is the largest in the world.

according to Statistics Checker SocialbladeIn the past 30 days alone, MrBeast has added an additional 5 million subscribers.

It’s just one metric — there’s no way of knowing how many people unsubscribed from his channel, for example.

What is certain is that the number of people who actively decide to stop watching his videos is far less than the number of people who decide to subscribe.

He’s not the only YouTuber to maintain popularity amid controversy, others have faced far more serious turmoil than MrBeast, and few have faced much consequence beyond a public apology.

In 2018, Logan Paul received backlash after uploading a video to his 15 million subscribers showing the body of a person who had apparently committed suicide.

After deleting the original video, He delivered an apology that lasted less than two minutes The caption was simple: “I’m so sorry.”

Now he has 23 million subscribers, owns a popular sports drink, and was the WWE United States Champion until August. He’s also had his fair share of pay-per-view boxing matches.

Other well-known YouTubers, including Pewdiepie, James Charles, and Jeffree Star, have experienced controversy and continued their careers after uploading apology videos.

A more modern example is Herschel “Guy” Beahm, known online as “Dr. Disrespect,” who admitted to messaging “a minor” in 2017.

He stressed that “no illegal behavior occurred, no photos were forwarded, and no criminal behavior was committed,” and he went offline for two months after making the statement.

Despite criticism from other prominent streamers, his return to streaming earlier this month attracted more than 3 million views.

Dr Disrespect remains the second most-watched streamer in the US this year. According to Streams Charts.

The point is: YouTubers tend to be quickly forgiven.

While MrBeast’s fan base continues to grow, controversy has resurfaced – and his next move could determine his long-term success.

James Lunn, chief strategy officer at Savvy Marketing, said the star was “in a very unique position” with a “multifaceted” brand that spanned multiple industries.

“We are really in uncharted territory,” he said, “and taking a proactive approach, addressing issues transparently and ensuring accountability can protect his brand.”

Brand expert Catherine Shuttleworth said the “sheer scale” of MrBeast’s fame might mitigate the backlash, but the latest lawsuit could be tricky.

“When it comes to his commercial activities, especially those aimed at families and children — like Feastables chocolate bars or Lunchly — that’s another matter,” she said.

“Parents usually hold the purchasing power and tend to be less tolerant of disputes involving safety, fairness and ethics.”

Back in August 2023, when I wrote about MrBeast, I predicted that he would soon take the YouTube crown, even though he had only half the number of subscribers he has now.

With his growing fame, he now faces additional challenges, with many on the internet eagerly awaiting his response to one aspect of what has been a complicated story so far.