MrBeast Sued by Reality Show Contestants Who Allege 'Chronic Mistreatment' Including Lack of 'Access to Hygienic Products': Complaint

The Prime Video show has been billed as "the biggest reality competition series, where 1,000 contestants will compete for a $5 million prize" — but it's mired in controversy

YouTube star MrBeast's company and Amazon are being sued by five contestants of the upcoming Beast Games reality competition show over alleged mistreatment, sexual harassment and unpaid wages.

MRB2024 (a company owned by "MrBeast," i.e. Jimmy Donaldson), Amazon and production company Off One's Base are the defendants named in a complaint filed Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Los Angeles.

The complaint alleges that "several contestants" were "hospitalized" during filming of Beast Games, which has billed itself as the largest reality show in television history. It further alleges "chronic mistreatment, degradation and, for the female contestants, hostile working conditions.”

Helmed by MrBeast — one of the world's most popular content creators, who has some 310 million YouTube subscribers — the show was announced in March by Amazon, which said it would premiere on Prime Video and be "the biggest reality competition series, where 1,000 contestants will compete for a $5 million prize.”

And while the show has a $100 million budget, according to the complaint, contestants were allegedly not paid fair wages, nor "given adequate access to hygienic products or medical care." It further alleges that female contestants "particularly and collectively suffered" during filming of the show. "The Beast Games work environment systematically fostered a culture of misogyny and sexism where Production Staff did nothing," the complaint alleges.

All five contestants filed the suit anonymously and some portions of the lawsuit are redacted. A representative for MrBeast, who is 26 years old, did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's requests for comment, nor did a representative for the plaintiffs. Representatives for Amazon said they would "not be commenting at this time."

Related: YouTube Star MrBeast Sues Delivery Partner Over Alleged 'Inedible' and 'Low Quality' Food

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Beast Games — which is reportedly still under production — has been mired in controversy for months, with some of the allegations laid out in the lawsuit earlier surfaced by media outlets.

In August, The New York Times reported that, “over a dozen" of the show's contestants "said they had not received adequate food or medical care and that some competitors had suffered injuries from the physical challenges."

While some portions of the complaint are redacted, the suit does cite instructions from an alleged employee handbook that state: “If talent wants to draw a dick on the white board in the video or do something stupid, let them… People like when we are in our natural element of stupidity. Really do everything you can to empower the boys when filming and help them make content. Help them be idiots.”

Related: YouTube Star MrBeast Says He Was Invited to Join 'Titanic' Submersible Trip: 'I Said No'

The complaint claimed that MrBeast's company, Amazon, and production controlled what the contestants wore on set, where they slept during filming and exposed them to dangerous conditions without having the necessary medical staff on hand to attend to their injuries.

The environment on set was so "void of humane standards," the document alleges, that the defendants "ended up volunteering to cover the cost of the Contestants’ therapy."

The lawsuit seeks class-action status on behalf of all affected contestants of the show, and asks that Amazon and MrBeast’s company pay those contestants any unpaid wages and expenses owed, as well as unspecified punitive monetary damages.

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