Unpacking the controversies surrounding MrBeast, your child's favourite YouTuber.

Content warning: This story includes allegations of sexual assault and child grooming.

If you have a child who spends time on YouTube, it's likely they're a fan of MrBeast and his videos. With a whopping 308 million subscribers, MrBeast is the most followed channel on the streaming platform.

Best known for massive giveaway videos like 'I Built 100 Houses and Gave Them Away!' and clicky stunt videos like 'I Spent 7 Days Buried Alive', the content creator has legions of fans across the world.

But more recently, MrBeast and his team have found themselves at the centre of several controversies, ranging from accusations that he fakes his videos, to very serious allegations that a now-former MrBeast employee, Ava Kris Tyson, was sending inappropriate messages to minors.

Ahead, we unpack the controversies and allegations. But let's start at the beginning.

Who is MrBeast?

MrBeast, real name Jimmy Donaldson, is a 26-year-old content creator who began posting YouTube videos in 2012, when he was just 13 years old.

By 2017, Donaldson's content was gaining traction, and as his channel grew, Donaldson began employing his friends to help him produce videos.

As the channel has grown, so has the content. Over the years, MrBeast videos have become more ambitious and extreme, as he and the team attempted to outdo themselves in the race to become the most followed channel on YouTube. One notable example of this was the video '$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!', which racked up 642 million views — his most-watched video to date.

In 2024, MrBeast reportedly employs around 250 people. And like any influencer with a giant platform, the brand has moved far beyond video content on YouTube. In 2022, MrBeast founded and launched Feastables, a snack food line that promises "delicious snacks with ingredients you can trust", which is available in Australia. In the US, he also launched a virtual fast-food restaurant called MrBeast Burger, but later sued the chain for selling "revolting" and sometimes "inedible" food that was tarnishing his reputation.

Until recently, MrBeast had avoided the controversies that so many other YouTubers face. Instead, he was lauded for his wholesome, family-friendly videos, which often featured charity work and generous subscriber giveaways. However, the revelations of the past few weeks now threaten MrBeast's once-pristine image.

What are the MrBeast allegations and controversies?

Ava Kris Tyson's child grooming and sexual assault allegations.

Ava Kris Tyson was a longtime collaborator, friend and employee of MrBeast, having worked with him since they were teenagers in 2012.

In late July, however, Tyson left the MrBeast team, after allegations surfaced online that she had sent inappropriate messages to a minor. The initial allegation was that when Tyson was 20, she sent messages that were sexual in nature to a then-16-year-old.

At first, alleged victim and X (formerly Twitter) user @LavaGS denied that Tyson had been inappropriate with him, writing that the accusations were "massive lies and twisting the truth".

"Ava never did anything wrong and just made a few edgy jokes. I was never exploited or taken advantage of," he wrote, asking that people "stop spreading lies".

"This situation takes away from children who are actively being exploited every day online. I am not a victim of anything being claimed in these videos or at all," he added.

However, as the correspondence between Tyson and Lava began to circulate online, more messages between Tyson and other alleged victims from the group chat platform Discord began to surface, and one X user accused Tyson of sexual assault.

"I was sexually assaulted by Ava Tyson and here is my story," wrote @Genderillennial. "For context Ava and I are both adults and met each other as adults."

The new allegations prompted Lava to reconsider his prior relationship with Tyson, and in a follow-up statement, he called their messages "inappropriate and wrong".

"This was five or six years ago and I thought I had a good memory of [the] situation but I was wrong," he wrote. "I spoke based on my memory of the situation and I still do not remember these conversations but they definitely happened. These conversations should not have happened with people at the age I was at the time, I strongly condemn them."

He continued, "I still believe I am not a grooming victim but these conversations should not have happened with me and any other minor in this Discord. I was a minor in this situation and not the adult influencer who shouldn't have allowed this to happen, I did not see this wrong at the time."

As the conversation continued online, MrBeast posted a statement addressing "the serious allegations of Ava Tyson's behaviour online".

"I am disgusted and opposed to such unacceptable acts," he wrote.

The content creator went on to say that he had hired "an independent third party to conduct a thorough investigation" of the situation.

"That said, I've seen enough online and taken immediate action to remove Ava from the company, my channel, and any association with MrBeast," he continued. "I do not condone or support any of the inappropriate actions. I will allow the independent investigators the necessary time to conduct a comprehensive investigation and will take any further actions based on their findings."

Over the last few days, I’ve become aware of the serious allegations of Ava Tyson's behavior online and I am disgusted and opposed to such unacceptable acts.

During that time, I have been focused on hiring an independent third party to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure…

— MrBeast (@MrBeast) July 25, 2024

Tyson, for her part, also posted an apology on X.

"I would like to apologise for any of my past behaviour or comments if it hurt or offended anyone," she wrote. "It was not my intent. Seeing recent events we've mutually decided it's best I permanently step away from all things MrBeast and social media to focus on my family and mental health.

"I want to add, I never groomed anyone," she continued, noting Lava's initial support of her.

"Having said that, I humbly apologise to anyone I have hurt with my unacceptable social media posts, past actions, and to those who may feel betrayed by how I used to act online," she said. "To lump these two factors together to create a narrative that my behaviour extended beyond bad edgy jokes is disgusting and did not happen. In past years, I have learned that my old humour is not acceptable. I cannot change who I was, but I can continue to work on myself. I don't want these accusations to impact the hundreds of people who work at MrBeast, which is why I have stepped away."

Unsafe conditions on the set of Beast Games.

Back in March, MrBeast announced he was teaming up with Prime Video for Beast Games. It seemed a natural fit for the YouTuber, given the success of his IRL Squid Game competition and penchant for handing out huge sums of money — and soon, the show was being dubbed "the biggest reality competition series".

“My goal is to make the greatest show possible and prove YouTubers and creators can succeed on other platforms," MrBeast said at the time. "Amazon gave me the creative control I need to try and make it happen. I hope to make the YouTube community proud."

Beast Games will feature 1,000 contestants competing for a USD$5 million cash prize — that's around $7.6 million Australian dollars, for those wondering. It's also set to be the largest single cash prize in television history.

Recently, however, the production was slammed by former contestants, who claimed that it was unsafe and staff were negligent in getting them the care they needed. In a New York Times exposé titled Willing to Die for MrBeast (and $5 Million), several contestants detailed their experiences on the set.

More than a dozen contestants claimed they "had not received adequate food or medical care and that some competitors had suffered injuries from the physical challenges". They also reported seeing contestants leave the arena on stretchers, and "watching fellow contestants vomiting and appearing to pass out". 

"There were several hospitalisations," the article alleged.

"We signed up for the show, but we didn't sign up for not being fed or watered or treated like human beings," one contestant said.

A spokesperson for MrBeast told the Times that production "was unfortunately complicated by the CrowdStrike incident, extreme weather and other unexpected logistical and communications issues", and noted that the team was looking into the allegations.

However, this was not the first time that MrBeast had been accused of on-set safety issues. In a TIME magazine article published in February 2024, a dozen former employees cited safety concerns around stunt work and video productions.

"They view safety as, like, being overly cautious or a weakness," alleged Scott Brown, who worked as a creative producer for MrBeast in 2023.

Jimmy Donaldson's racist and homophobic remarks.

In the midst of the allegations surrounding Ava Tyson, Jimmy Donaldson AKA MrBeast himself,  has also come under fire for racist comments he made earlier in his career.

On July 24, YouTuber Rosanna Pansino posted a clip of Donaldson from 2017 in which he allegedly responded to a person joking about selling Black people for money.

"Selling [explicit] for $400?" Donaldson can be heard saying in the clip. "The most I would pay is like 300; 400's just out of my price range for that type of stuff."

After a cut, he can also be heard using homophobic slurs and engaging with commenters using further racist slurs.

Donaldson has remained silent on social media, but did address the clip in a statement via a spokesperson. "When Jimmy was a teenager he acted like many kids and used inappropriate language while trying to be funny," a spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter.

"Over the years he has repeatedly apologised and has learned that increasing influence comes with increased responsibility to be more aware and more sensitive to the power of language. After making some bad jokes and other mistakes when he was younger, as an adult, he has focused on engaging with the MrBeast community to work together on making a positive impact around the world."

Allegations of fake videos and illegal lotteries.

On July 25, a YouTuber who goes by DogPack404 posted a video titled, 'I Worked For MrBeast, He's a Fraud'.

The video went through several allegations, ranging in seriousness from claims the team fakes the spectacular stunts the channel is known for, to more serious accusations of fraud.

DogPack404 alleged that many of the "random subscribers" featured in MrBeast videos are friends of MrBeast, employees of the company, or otherwise known to the crew.

"They are never random subscribers," he said. "If you subscribe, you will not win a million dollars."

DogPack404 went on to allege that MrBeast's livestream giveaways were actually illegal lotteries that promoted gambling to children, and that many of the people who supposedly won items during these livestreams never received their prizes. He also showed a clip of a MrBeast employee supposedly forging Donaldson's signature on a t-shirt during one of these livestreams, which he labelled as an example of fraudulent activity.

Despite the allegations, MrBeast hasn't been cancelled.

While it's undoubtedly been a tumultuous month for Jimmy Donaldson and the MrBeast team, the YouTube channel doesn't appear to be facing any backlash. In fact, while these controversies have been generating a lot of talk on social media, his channel has actually gained followers in the past month — nine million in the last 30 days, according to Social Blade, actually.

Is MrBeast too big to be cancelled, or is a reckoning yet to come?

If this brings up any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, contact Bravehearts, an organisation dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child sexual abuse, on 1800 272 831, or 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) — the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service.