The onset of August has been tumultuous for Jimmy Donaldson, popularly known as MrBeast, as numerous participants from his much-anticipated Amazon MGM studios game show Beast Games have leveled serious allegations regarding unsafe and potentially negligent filming environments.
The New York Times recently reported that various contestants shared their experiences regarding the chaotic management of the production. Allegations include dire shortages of food, insufficient medical assistance, and injuries sustained during competitive challenges.
YouTube intensifies its battle against ad blockers with new unskippable ads
The inaugural filming round for this reality competition occurred at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, where close to 2,000 contestants congregated vying for a staggering $5 million prize. Throughout production, participants resided within the stadium itself—sleeping there and having to surrender their food supplies, clothing items, and—curiously enough—medications to the crew.
Food served was described as minimalistic; cold oatmeal with raw vegetables alongside hard-boiled eggs made up most meals. The only notable other item provided was MrBeast’s branded Feastables chocolate bars. According to one participant’s account, retrieving medication returned from staff proved challenging; they recounted going several days without necessary insulin due to delays in retrieving it. Another contestant requested meals coinciding with medication intake but received a dismissive response along with “half a banana.”
A number of complaints reported by individuals speaking to the New York Times included severe sleep deprivation caused by night shoots along with resting on hot turf during daytime hours at the stadium. Female competitors also raised concerns about gender bias leading some not receiving appropriate sanitary products while menstruating since this condition was reportedly dismissed as “not a medical emergency.”
Everything you need to know about MrBeast’s upcoming Prime Video game show
The report revealed that some anonymous contestants felt ill-equipped due to what they perceived as an inadequate preparation by the production team given the large turnout of participants. Several competitors expressed feelings of being misled when informed that roughly 1,000 would attend initially; however, an introductory video featuring Donaldson suggested he always aimed for around 2,000 contestants before eventually deciding on half that number for actual filming.
“The promotional shoot partnered with MrBeast involving over 2k contributors faced complications including unforeseen logistical challenges related to external events like CrowdStrike incidents and weather conditions which we are presently assessing,” explained a representative from MrBeast when addressing concerns posed by The New York Times. “Nevertheless we’re thankful since almost all those invited out for our next Toronto production have eagerly accepted.”
Mashable has reached out for comments from MrBeast’s representatives and will provide updates upon any forthcoming responses.
