Prime Video went all in with the wildest reality TV competition series to see the light of day.Beast Gamescomes from YouTube content creator MrBeast, known offline asJimmy Donaldson. MrBeast rose to internet fame with hishigh-energy streaming content, often featuring video game playthroughs, stunts, and extravagant giveaways.Streaming juggernaut Amazon MGM Studiosannounced their newest reality TV venture in March 2024, collaborating with the popular content creator to developone of the most chaotic competition series in the history of television.
When it comes to both scope and scale,Beast Gamesbroke the mold in many ways compared totraditional competition series likeThe ChallengeorSurvivor. From the start of the competition, 1,000 competitors signed up to compete in a sequence of mad challenges while working toward winning a cash prize that started at an initial $5,000,000 and only grew from there. As the competitors advanced, more and more of them were eliminated through a series of hectic mini-games and stunts that were meant to combine different skill sets of wits, strategy, and strength. The competition gradually narrowed down, andafter a tension-filled face-off in the finale, the inaugural season ofBeast Gamesfinally found its winner.
MrBeast Made His Presence Known
Of course, Prime Video wouldn’t expect the infamously flashy MrBeast to be a silent partner. The YouTuber co-created the series with Sean Klitzner, Tyler Conklin, and Mack Hopkins.The content creator also made his presence known as the host of the series,bringing the same brash persona from his online videos to each scene in the series. Viewers who know him for his online stunts, likeenlisting actorDave Bautistato help save 100 dogs, will get the same energetic enthusiasm MrBeast brings to his online content, where he often chases oddly feel-good narratives through his strange stunts.
Beast Gamesbegan in a large warehouse to contain the inordinate number of competitors, before eventually moving to various locations such as"Beast City" and “Beast Island.“The competition tested contestants in individual and team challenges, which allowed for tension-filled moments like when team leaders were encouraged to betray their squad in exchange for $1,000,000. The over-arching narrative crafted by the season evolved,as the players' motivations for joining the series and their actions in the competition gradually reveal whether they fall into the category of hero or villain, and viewers could pick their favorite competitor to cheer for accordingly. MrBeast oversaw the sweatsuit-clad chaos, narrating for the camera as the game progressed.
‘Beast Games’ Found Its First Winner
In the final episode, six contestants remained, nowcompeting for a prize that had doubled to $10,000,000. Remarkably, as the competition narrowed, two contestants who kicked off the competition side-by-side, players 830 and 831, would be the final two to face off for the cash prize. Player 830 wasTwana Barnett, a professional wrestler and actress who won hearts with her emotional story of experiencing homelessness as a child, and her desire to use the cash prize to help other homeless children. Player 831 wasJeffrey Randall Allen, whose young son suffers from a rare disease known as Creatine Transporter Deficiency, and pledged to put the prize money toward finding a cure. Allen and Barnett faced off after eliminating the other 998 players, in a final game of chance wherea blindfolded Allen had to guess which one of 10 briefcases Barnett had hidden the $10,000,000 check inside.
Although the showdown was meant to last several rounds, with the competitors faking each other out by taking turns alternately wearing the blindfold and hiding the check,in either an incredible show of intuition or a fantastic streak of luck, Allen guessed the correct case in the very first round. Although the moment was slightly anti-climactic for viewers after the grueling competition that had led up to it, Allen jubilantly celebrated his win by sliding down the mountain of cash used as set-dressing, as his son, who had been invited on stage, charmingly requested to know how all that money would be transported home.
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The game had over 85 winners who won prizes along the way, amounting to the stunning amount of over $20,000,000 total. Each player received $2,000 for simply playing, while others were rewarded different amounts in exchange for agreeing to leave the competition at different stages.
To conclude, MrBeast acknowledged how heartbreaking the defeat had been for player 830, while cheekily hinting that she can return. In what comes across as a bid to drum up streaming numbers, theenthusiastic host and co-creatoralso encouraged viewers to watch the series over again to see if they couldspot special details that hint at where the games might go in the future, alluding to a possible second season on the horizon.
