'Beast' of a lawsuit: YouTube star and Amazon sued by contestants over abuse claims

Jimmy Donaldson is no stranger to controversy. At just 26, the YouTube star known the world-over as MrBeast has weathered his share of contentious publicity and public backlash for his high-profile social media stunts, plus allegations of fostering a toxic work environment for his staff.

Throughout it all, Donaldson has steadily grown his brand and his media empire, to the point where he is the most subscribed-to YouTube channel in history with a fortune estimated to be in the range of $700 million. Unlike comparable superstars whose fame and fortune come from record deals and movie contracts, MrBeast's celebrity is based almost entirely on his simply being MrBeast. He is the definition of self-referential stardom in the social media era.

This week, five unnamed participants competing for the promised $5 million prize in Donaldson's forthcoming reality competition, "Beast Games," filed a class action lawsuit against both Donaldson's production company and Amazon, which is set to stream the series worldwide on its Prime Video platform. In the suit, the plaintiffs allege they had been "fed sporadically and sparsely," "were not given adequate access to hygienic products or medical care" and that "female contestants particularly and collectively suffered" from a work environment which "systematically fostered a culture of misogyny and sexism where Production Staff did nothing."

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What does this mean for YouTube's breakout star and his dreams of cross-platform domination?

What are the allegations against the show?

Although the full complaint has not been made public yet, a heavily redacted version was obtained by Variety claiming that "Beast Games" "failed to pay minimum wages and overtime; failed to prevent sexual harassment; created conditions that subjected contestants to 'infliction of emotional distress'; did not provide participants uninterrupted meal breaks or rest breaks; and exposed contestants to 'dangerous circumstances and conditions as a condition of their employment.'" Crucially, the suit claims that "participants were treated as employees and are due compensation for their services and for numerous alleged labor law violations they encountered," Time said.

More broadly, the suit alleges Donaldson misrepresented the number of participants who would be competing in the show, and in doing so "misled about their odds of winning the $5 million prize despite putting their lives on hold to film," The Washington Post said. Attorneys for the plaintiffs also claim the accused Donaldson and the other defendants of "misclassifying contestants as volunteers to get tax credits" from Nevada, CNN said, resulting in "$2.5 million in incentives from the state to film in Las Vegas."

This week's lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, comes just over a month after The New York Times ran a lengthy exposé on similar allegations surrounding the show. "We signed up for the show" one contestant told The Times, "but we didn't sign up for not being fed or watered or treated like human beings."

"It's a Fyre Fest kind of feeling,” said one former crew member to Rolling Stone, referencing the infamously catastrophic luxury music festival. “There's a reason why this level of production hasn't been attempted before, and it certainly should never have been attempted without people that know what they are doing."

At this time, neither Donaldson nor Amazon have responded to requests for comment from Variety, Time, CNN or The Washington Post

What does this mean for MrBeast himself?

Donaldson has "dealt with backlash in the past," Yahoo Entertainment said, but the allegations raised in this week's lawsuit are the "most serious he's faced" and "an indication that the facade of his empire is starting to crack." Even before the suit was filed, the allegations surrounding the show are a sign that MrBeast's "reputation, as well as his multimillion-dollar YouTube empire, are on the line," The New York Times said.

In their suit, the plaintiffs have requested an unspecified amount of monetary compensation, "likely totaling in the millions of dollars," to be decided in a jury trial, attorneys for the group said in a statement to Time. But, the publication said, "the lawsuit, however, is unlikely to go to trial, as class actions typically settle before trial."

Given "all the hoopla" surrounding the show itself, "You'd think MrBeast and Amazon would want to put their best face forward on these allegations," Deadline said. After The New York Times' exposé last month, "you'd think MrBeast and Amazon would be ready with some sort of response. Alas, no."