MrBeast and Amazon sued by competitors from his $5M reality show over alleged 'unsafe' conditions

[September 19, 2024]  By JAMES POLLARD

NEW YORK (AP) — MrBeast is accused of creating “unsafe” employment conditions, including sexual harassment, and misrepresenting contestants' odds at winning his new Amazon reality show's $5 million grand prize in a lawsuit filed Tuesday by five unnamed participants.

The filing alleges that the multimillion-dollar company behind YouTube's most popular channel failed to provide minimum wages, overtime pay, uninterrupted meal breaks and rest time for competitors — whose “work on the show was the entertainment product” sold by MrBeast.

A spokesperson for MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, told The Associated Press in an email that he had no comment on the new lawsuit.

Donaldson’s “Beast Games” was touted as the “biggest reality competition." It was supposed to put the North Carolina content creator in front of audiences beyond the YouTube platform where his record 316 million subscribers routinely watch his whimsical challenges that often carry lavish gifts of direct cash.

But its initial Las Vegas shoot began facing criticism before it even wrapped. Donaldson’s companies cast 2,000 people in an initial tryout this July where half could advance to the actual show's filming in Toronto.

Contestants only learned upon their arrival that the Las Vegas pool surpassed 1,000 competitors, according to the lawsuit, which significantly reducing their chances of victory. The lawsuit argues the “false advertising” violated California business laws that prohibit sweepstakes operators from “misrepresenting in any manner the odds of winning any prize."

The five anonymous competitors also said that “limited sustenance" and “insufficient medical staffing” endangered their health.

Jimmy Donaldson, the popular YouTube video maker who goes by MrBeast, wears a Lionel Messi jersey as he stands in a sideline box at the start of an MLS soccer match between Inter Miami and CF Montreal Sunday, March 10, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

The filing alleges that production staff created a “toxic” work environment for women who faced “sexual harassment” throughout the contest. Those sections are heavily redacted in an effort to comply with “confidentiality provisions” signed by the competitors, according to a press release from their lawyers.

The lawsuit adds to the complaints — circulated by online influencers in the shoot's immediate aftermath — that an unorganized set had left some contestants injured and lacking in regular access to food and medication. Other participants have told AP they received two light meals each day and MrBeast branded chocolate bars.

MrBeast’s team also faces new accusations they “knowingly misclassified” the contestants’ employment status to the Nevada Film Commission in order to receive a state tax credit for more than $2 million.

Among other forms of relief, the five competitors seek an order that MrBeast institute “workplace reforms” and awards “all wages owed."

Last month, amid several public relations crises, Donaldson ordered a full assessment of his YouTube empire's internal culture and outlined plans to require company-wide sensitivity training.

No more details have been divulged and no date has been publicized for the reality game show's release.

All contents © copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved