Competition to Offer Biggest Payout in TV History

MrBeast is entering the world of reality competition. For the uninitiated, that would be Jimmy Donaldson, who just happens to be the biggest YouTube star, with 245 million subscribers. Donaldson has scored a deal with Amazon Prime to create the "Beast Games," a competition that will feature 1,000 contestants from more than 240 nations competing for a prize of $5 million, reports Variety. The prize will be the biggest payout in TV history, according to Deadline.

• No details: Neither Donaldson nor Amazon are revealing details about the competition itself, and there's no word yet on when it might begin. Donaldson says he wants to "prove YouTubers and creators can succeed on other platforms."
• As a YouTuber: Donaldson, a 25-year-old resident of North Carolina, pulled in $82 million between June 2022 and June 2023, per Forbes, making him by far the platform's highest-earning creator. As Yahoo Finance notes, he's made a name for himself with "upbeat videos that contrast sharply with the darker aspects of the internet" and with his philanthropy.

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