“The female contestants particularly and collectively suffered as a result of defendants’ actions,” the lawsuit says. “The Beast Game work environment systematically fostered a culture of misogyny and sexism.”
Five game show contestants have filed a lawsuit claiming that they were subjected to “unreasonable” and “unsafe” conditions while participating in Amazon Prime’s “Beast Games.”
The complaint was submitted in Los Angeles County Superior Court earlier this week. It names defendants including Amazon and a production company associated with Jimmy Donaldson, a YouTube personality better known as “MrBeast.”
According to NBC News, “Beast Games” has been advertised as a competitive reality program. Contestants are asked to perform varied tasks, many of which involve intense physical activity. The show’s winner is expected to win a prize of $5 million.
But attorneys for the five plaintiffs say that Amazon, along with Donaldson’s production company, required participants to sacrifice their physical health and their mental well-being.
“Defendant production companies sand Amazon shamelessly exploited the labor of approximately [redacted] people who served as contestants,” the lawsuit alleges.
The complaint, which is heavily redacted, vaguely details how the contestants were abused.
Some were “penned into enclosed spaces” and forced to endure “conditions where they were underfed, overtired” while “competing in [a] stressful and exhausting challenge for a cash prize that could change their lives.”
Aside from these apparent concerns, attorneys say they were “insufficient medical staff to attend to potential and actual injuries” that occurred during production.
Sexual harassment was also purportedly a chronic concern on-set.
“The female contestants particularly and collectively suffered as a result of defendants’ actions,” the lawsuit says. “The Beast Game work environment systematically fostered a culture of misogyny and sexism.”
“I expected to be challenged,” a female plaintiff said in a statement reprinted, in part, by Variety. “But I didn’t think I would be treated like nothing—less than nothing.”
“And as one of the woman, I can say it absolutely felt like a hostile environment for us. We honestly could not have been respected less—as people, much less employees—if they tried,” the woman said.
Attorneys note that the production crew adhered to a so-called “MrBeast Handbook,” which contained instructions either condoning or actively encouraging “inappropriate” antics.
“‘If talent wants to draw a [penis] on a white board in the video or do something stupid, let them,’” the complaint states. “‘Really do everything you can to empower the boys when filming and help them make content. Help them be idiots.’”
The New York Times, which published an article detailing poor filming conditions, provides a more detailed overview of the alleged abuse.
One female contestant said that she left a “stadium bruised and bleeding after being injured and eliminated in the first challenge.” She was given about $1,000 in one-dollar bills as an apparent consolation prize, but says the money was taken away from her after the cameras stopped rolling.
“Participants entered into contracts and they were promised compensation for their services. Their expectation of compensation, along with them being consistently under the control and supervision of the production staff, makes them employees under California law. As such, they were entitled to, and denied, certain protections,” attorney and lead counsel Robert Pafundi told Variety “And when you add to that the extreme neglect, degradation, harassment and inhumane conditions—it’s quite simply a massive dereliction of duty, for which the defendants must and will now be held accountable.”
Other players say that they were served food to which they were allergic, despite having completed “FAQ” documents that provided the production crew with information about their allergies and dietary restrictions.
“We were treated horribly,” a contestant told the Times. “They took on this challenge of 2,000 competitors. They should have known they needed an enormous crew to handle this correctly.”
The lawsuit accuses both Amazon and MrBeast’s production team of failing “to provide a safe and healthful place to work” and “jeopardized the safety of workers” by “not providing sufficient food or drink” and “forcing them not to sleep and forcing them to participate in games that unreasonably risked physical and mental injury.”
Sources
‘Beast Games’ contestants sue MrBeast and Amazon, alleging abusive conditions on set of game show
Contestants on MrBeast’s ‘Beast Games’ Say They Were Hungry and Injured on Set
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