YouTuber and philanthropist MrBeast (aka Jimmy Donaldson) has made a name for himself on and off the video-sharing platform. His channel boasts 245 million subscribers, gained through family-friendly videos with him doing stunts or acts of charity.
The news today is that Donaldson has struck a deal with Amazon MGM Studios to make his first traditional competition TV series.
It will be based on his YouTube series “Beast Games.” 1,000 contestants will go after a $5 million cash payout, making this the biggest single-prize offered in the history of television. The record was previously held by Netflix’s “Squid Games: The Challenge,” which has a $4.56 million prize.
This new show created a bidding war between Amazon and at least one other major (but unidentified) streamer. One of the selling points for Donaldson was Amazon allowing him to retain creative control of the production.
“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.” He will be hosting and executive producing the new series, and will also continue to make his YouTube content.
“MrBeast has captured the attention and imagination of fans of all ages, from all walks of life, and all over the world,” Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon MGM Studios, said. “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 YouTube Channel
Donaldson has been making YouTube content since 2016, and has shattered subscriber records on the platform. His channel currently has almost 800 videos showing him giving away millions in food and supplies to those in need. He claims that the channel brings in $600 to $700 million annually, which is directly re-invested back into production.
“Each video does a couple million in ad revenue, a couple million in brand deals,” Donaldson told Time. “I’ve reinvested everything to the point of—you could claim—stupidity, just believing that we would succeed. And it’s worked out … I just want to be the best and I want to make the best content possible.”
We’ll let you know what we hear about how this series progresses.
