Financial Association News, September 23rd (Editor Shi Zhengcheng) Just before the launch of the 'largest live game reality show ever,' produced by Amazon and the 'global number one influencer,' Jimmy Donaldson, their ambitious plan is facing legal challenges: several contestants are taking them to court, claiming 'shameless exploitation.'

As the biggest winner in the global influencer economy, operating under the 'MrBeast' persona on streaming platforms, Donaldson's global fan base has already exceeded 0.5 billion. Just on the Youtube platform under Alphabet, there are 0.3 billion subscribers.

In the videos produced by Donaldson, there is a long-lasting popular series: involving ordinary people in live games, where the ultimate winner can walk away with hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money. The core focus of these videos is similar to Netflix's television series 'Squid Game'—showing to what extent ordinary people are willing to go for hundreds of thousands of dollars, with the only difference being that losers do not actually die.

Amazon, which sees the value of the streaming economy, joined hands with Donaldson in March this year to launch a reality show called "Wild Beast Game". With the endorsement of technology giants, they decided to host the "world's largest game reality show" - offering 1000 participants the chance to compete for a $5 million prize.

Does a dangerous game constitute infringement?

In the lawsuit filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court this month, five women who participated in the program's recording initiated a class action lawsuit on behalf of all contestants against Donaldson and Amazon MGM Studios.

They accuse the production team of only providing extremely limited food, causing participants to be "malnourished and overly fatigued", harming the health and welfare of participants. The legal documents also allege that the competition environment built by the production team is dangerous, resulting in contestants being injured and not provided with adequate medical care. At the same time, the background checks on participants are not thorough, leading to individuals with criminal records participating in physical confrontation competitions.

The plaintiffs also allege that the defendants "allowed and encouraged a culture, pattern, and practice of sexual harassment, including creating a hostile work environment".

Willing to risk their lives for $5 million.

According to a report earlier this year, multiple contestants told the media that they had to sign a contract to participate in the program recording. The terms included "I understand that these activities may result in my death, illness, or serious physical harm, including but not limited to fatigue, dehydration, overwork, burns, and heat stroke".

While contestants familiar with MrBeast's videos know he likes to do some challenging activities that push physical limits, such as staying up all night, this time the significant collaboration with amazon apparently forces them to pursue more thrilling program effects, as well as more extreme questioning of human nature and physiology.

According to multiple contestants, during the recording process in July this year, 2000 participants crowded into a sports stadium in Nevada for several days of continuous recording. Their goal was to compete for 1000 spots to advance to the next stage of filming in Canada through challenges like moving heavy objects and extreme capture the flag.

Reports state that many contestants were carried off on stretchers from the competition site, with some witnessing scenes of their companions vomiting and losing consciousness, and many being hospitalized for treatment.

Almost all contestants have expressed that logistical personnel at the scene were severely lacking, with some stating that they had gone up to 20 hours without food, and medications and clean clothes were not delivered on time. Some participants who were eliminated in the first round mentioned that as a consolation prize, they received 1000 dollars in cash, but after the cameras were turned off, the production team asked for the money back, claiming they would pay them later.

One participant said: "We signed up for this program, but we did not sign up to not eat, not drink water, or not be treated as human beings."

In response, a spokesperson for MrBeast stated that this shoot was unfortunately affected by extensive computer crashes from CrowdStrike, extreme weather, and other unexpected logistical and communication issues. MrBeast has begun a formal review and is taking measures to ensure learning from this experience.