A small village appears in Toronto. This is the series of the MrBeast reality TV series under siege | CBC news

This month, there was a strange sight in northern Toronto: a huge compound that looked like a small walled town, with a row of identical houses.

Although it looks like something out of a dystopia, it is the setting Beast gamesan upcoming reality TV show created by YouTuber MrBeast in partnership with Amazon MGM Studios will be filming in Toronto under a cloud of controversy.

Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, a YouTube sensation whose channel has more than 300 million subscribers, is the biggest on the platform. The channel is known for videos that focus on unusual charitable donations or elaborate stunts, such as recreating Netflix’s Squid Game competition.

But Donaldson’s pursuit of television has been beset by a number of difficulties, including recently raised concerns about his company’s internal culture and some issues related to earlier filming of the program.

A huge series comes up in Toronto

Beast games About 1,000 participants will compete for a US$5 million cash prize — the “single largest prize in the history of television and streaming,” according to a March news release from Amazon Prime. The release called the upcoming show, based on MrBeast’s YouTube videos, the “biggest reality competition series ever.”

Drone footage captured by CBC News last week near the abandoned Downsview airport shows a large cement tower at one end of the row, facing a group of what appear to be 12 single-storey houses, set up in two rows along a road which is dotted with a circle. gardens. The whole set is surrounded by a red wall.

When asked about the MrBeast performance at Downsview Park, Toronto City Hall’s film and entertainment department confirmed to CBC News that the show was being filmed there. Additional details could not be shared for “confidentiality reasons,” he said

Amazon MGM Studios declined to comment, indicating it would be open to media interviews closer to the show’s launch.

Donaldson did not respond to CBC’s request for comment.

Viral videos, numerous scandals

Many of MrBeast’s viral videos have focused on charitable activities or donations, such as giving US$10,000 to a homeless person and funding cataract surgeries for 1,000 people. His spin-off channel, Beast Philanthropy, has gained 26 million subscribers.

Although the creator has faced criticism from those who see the subject of his good deeds as possible, he is largely viewed as a positive person.

But with the creator now facing numerous scandals, that image could be cracked.

“Intentionally, I believe, he chose to brand himself as this beacon of kindness,” Katya Varbanova, marketing expert and founder of Viral Marketing Stars, told CBC News.

“That’s what allowed him to go unscathed for so long because everyone always said, ‘Hey, maybe he’s not perfect, but at least he’s doing good in the world.'”

Earlier this month, the Associated Press reported that Donaldson had ordered a full assessment of his company’s internal culture. This came after the YouTuber admitted in July that he had been using “inappropriate language” following the circulation of old videos that showed racist and homophobic comments in the past.

Meanwhile, more than a dozen participants in the first half of the Beast gamesfilmed in Nevada for Donaldson’s YouTube channel before filming the Canadian premiere, he told The New York Times earlier this month that they faced unexpected conditions on set, ranging from delayed meals to difficulty finding medication.

The allegations regarding the conditions on the Beast Games set are just one part of “MrBeast’s PR crisis cycle,” Varbanova said.

Data scarce on Toronto production

CBC News confirmed that Toronto paramedics, fire and police are aware of the production. Toronto Fire Services said “permitting and inspections were done,” and police said their explosive disposal unit was consulted.

Exact filming dates are unknown. However, Transport Canada has issued a no-fly zone for the area, at the request of a “production company,” which runs from August 21 to September 6, the agency told CBC News.

It is a non-union performance, according to a “do not work” statement posted by ACTRA Toronto, the union that covers Toronto performers.

On a unionized team, the team is more powerful, according to John Oates, an emeritus professor of developmental psychology in the UK who helped create guidelines to protect people in reality TV productions.

“If you’re not in a union … you don’t have a way to raise issues without jeopardizing your position in production,” Oates said.

One of the difficulties of producing a mass reality TV production is that it is more difficult to meet the individual psychological needs of the participants, according to Oates, chair of the media ethics advisory group for the British Psychological Society.

“Often part of (reality television) is to throw challenges at the participants,” he said.

He told CBC News that it’s important to respect the dignity and autonomy of participants, even in a format that relies on a shock factor.

What happens during filming in Toronto could be crucial to the reception of MrBeast going forward, Varbanova said.

“I think it would be very interesting to see what happens in Toronto,” she said. “If people come out and tell stories that show […] improving working conditions, that’s the ultimate PR move.”