Thousands lined up when YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson — AKA MrBeast — opened its first physical location with MrBeast Burger at American Dream Meadowlands in East Rutherford in 2022. The mega entertainment mall had to distribute special wristbands to fans lined up waiting to get a glimpse and a taste.
Now, the world’s most-watched YouTube personality is going all-in and launching the world’s biggest reality competition with Amazon MGM Studios. Beast Games will be released on Prime Video as a series and feature over 1,000 contestants competing for a top prize of $5 million, Amazon said in a statement.
“My goal is to make the greatest show possible and prove YouTubers and creators can succeed on other platforms,” said Donaldson. “Amazon gave me the creative control I need to try and make it happen. I hope to make the YouTube community proud.”
Beast Games on Amazon Prime
Beast Games will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide. Donaldson will serve as host and executive producer.
“MrBeast has captured the attention and imagination of fans of all ages, from all walks of life, and all over the world,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon MGM Studios. “We are excited to work with Jimmy and his talented team to bring his brilliant, high production, and stakes-raising concepts to Beast Games for our global customers to experience.”
MrBeast features spectacles, challenges, and massive giveaways, including millions of dollars in food and supplies for those in need. In November 2022, he became the most subscribed YouTube creator worldwide and now has over 244 million subscribers.
“When MrBeast first told us about his concept for the show, we were blown away by his ambition to make Beast Games the biggest reality competition series ever,” said Vernon Sanders, head of television, Amazon MGM Studios.
Creative control is one reason Donaldson decided to host his show with Amazon over another avenue.
Donaldson said that his decision to host his show on Amazon stemmed in part because other platforms wouldn’t give him the same level of creative control. He is set to both host and executive produce the show, according to Amazon.
Mr. Beast Burger at American Dream
The opening of Donaldson’s new burger restaurant American Dream drew more than 10,000 people and reportedly sold more burgers in one day than any restaurant had before.
Jimmy Donaldson is a YouTube creator, entrepreneur, and philanthropist known as “MrBeast.” Donaldson is also the founder of Feastables, a chocolate and snack brand company; co-creator of #TeamTrees, a fundraiser for the Arbor Day Foundation that has raised nearly $25 million for its campaigns to plant over 24 million trees; and #TeamSeas, a fundraiser for Ocean Conservancy and The Ocean Cleanup, which has raised over $33 million to remove trash out of oceans, rivers and beaches.
Donaldson told podcasters in “The Colin and Samir Show,” that it will be “the largest game show in history” with the most contestants and the biggest cash prizes. Netflix previously claimed both records for its “Squid Game: The Challenge” reality competition series.
About Mr. Beast
MrBeast is one of the most popular YouTube channels on the platform, with 245 million subscribers. In recent years, each of his videos easily surpasses 100 million views, and at times has pushed half a billion. In addition to his stunt videos, Donaldson has garnered attention for his unique method of philanthropy: in one video, called “1,000 blind people see for the first time,” he pays for patients’ cataract surgery. As the patients emerge from cataract eye surgery, some in tears, he hands some of them a suitcase filled with cash.
Jimmy Donaldson has won the Streamy Awards’ Creator of the Year award four years in a row and back-to-back Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards for “Favorite Male Creator.” He has appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone, Forbes and most recently, Time Magazine, which also named him one of the world’s 100 most influential people in 2023.
In October 2020, he launched Beast Philanthropy, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that focuses solely on global charity efforts to provide life-changing assistance to individuals in need. To date, it has distributed over 15 million free meals and expanded to projects worldwide, including building freshwater wells in Cameroon, houses for tornado victims in Kentucky, homes for people without housing in Costa Rica, and helping over 2000 amputees walk again. He currently works and resides in Greenville, North Carolina.
In November 2020, he opened his first burger restaurant, MrBeast Burger, near his hometown of Greenville, North Carolina. Since then, the chain has expanded to nearly every US state and several Canadian provinces. Originally, items from the YouTuber’s fast food chain were only available for delivery.
