Beast Games Competitors File Lawsuit Against MrBeast’s Production Company

Earlier this year, Jimmy “MrBeast” Donaldson signed a deal with Prime Video to produce Beast Games, a competition show that Amazon reportedly paid $100 million for. But before the first episode of Beast Games has even premiered, a lawsuit has been filed in Los Angeles alleging that MrBeast’s production company created a “toxic environment” featuring sexual harassment, failure to pay minimum and overtime wages, and unfair business practices.

There were previous reports that Beast Games failed to provide adequate food or medical care to its contestants. But according to The Hollywood Reporter, the proposed class-action lawsuit goes even further, accusing the production company of coercing contestants into agreeing to “unreasonable contracts with illegal terms and illusory obligations” that not only misclassified their employment status but also allowed the show to “evade protections related to minimum and overtime wages, mandatory meal breaks, and workers’ compensation benefits.”

The complaint alleges that the production company created a “culture of misogyny and sexism” that led to a “hostile and toxic work environment” for female candidates, who were subjected to “severe shaming and unfair disparagement.” The lawsuit cites a MrBeast Production employee handbook as a top-down example of the sexism at play: “It’s okay for the guys to be childish… If talent wants to draw a dick on the whiteboard in the video or do something stupid, let them. Do absolutely everything you can to empower the guys during filming and help them create content. Help them be idiots.”

Now that the lawsuit has been filed, it will be up to a Supreme Court judge to decide whether the plaintiffs’ proposed class action will go forward and include everyone who participated in Beast Games. The plaintiffs’ attorneys also suggested that the production company could be held liable for millions in damages if the case is proven in court.