Amazon Prime Video confirms ‘worst show ever’ is coming back
The Prime Video show has been mired in controversy.
Prime Video is officially bringing back reality show Beast Games for not one but two new seasons, after the show was branded a harbinger of the end times by viewers and critics alike.
Despite arriving in a cloud of controversy, the streamer’s decision shouldn’t come as a surprise after Beast Games became the most-watched reality series on the Amazon streaming service, with over 50 million viewers.
Hosted and executive produced by YouTuber Mr Beast – real name Jimmy Donaldson – the show was a blatant riff on Squid Game that replicated Donaldson’s brand of cash dash challenges.
Mr Beast dangled $10 million (£7.6 million), the biggest reality show cash prize ever, to 1,000 hopeful entrants who were whittled down to one through a series of ruthless tests and twists.
“Y’ALL ARE NOT READY FOR THE BIG STUFF WE HAVE PLANNED,” Donaldson teased to fans in a post on X after Prime Video announced the renewal.
While the viewership numbers can’t be argued with, some were appalled by the ‘dystopian’ series, which scored a dismal Rotten Tomatoes rating.
1,000 hopeful entrants were whittled down to just one (Picture: Jas Davis/Prime)@fakeart09 wrote on X: ‘Beast Games represents the worst of human nature, selfish, individualistic, push someone down so you can stand high all directed by a guy who broke the system and now throws endless amounts of money around to push people to their limits. It’s Squid Game capitalism.’
Echoing this, @GoldenEraGamez wrote: ‘Tried watching Beast Games out of curiosity, and honestly worst show ever, it truly shows how selfish and easily people can be turned into animals by money. I should have honestly expected such behaviour.’
Similar conversations on Reddit saw user @drkiwi post: ‘I watched the first two episodes and agree with the author. Most of the challenges involve sacrifice. Either yourself or your teammates. It has such a dog-eat-dog subtext that it’s not fun to watch.’
However, other fans were celebrating news of many more episodes of Beast Games, with @TalkNerdyto writing on X: ‘I’m thrilled to hear Beast Games is renewed for two more seasons! Season 1 was absolutely incredible, and I can’t wait for what’s next. I’m happy to wait, but I’m so excited for more!’
@GenefaMurphy also wrote on X: ‘Beast Games absolute legendary!!! My kids made me watch it but man was I hooked. A massive social experiment! Genius Mr Beast and crew!
Before the show arrived on Prime Video, several contestants filed a lawsuit accusing Mr Beast’s production company and Amazon of a laundry list of offences. The accusations ranged from sexual harassment, ‘inhumane’ conditions and insufficient wages.
The 52-page document claimed contestants were ‘shamelessly exploited’. Mr Beast said the allegations were ‘blown out of proportion’ in a statement on X.
Beast Games season 1 is available to stream on Prime Video.
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