Celebrity
MrBeast And Amazon Sued By Competitors From His $5M Reality Show Over Alleged ‘Unsafe’ Conditions
NEW YORK — MrBeast is accused of fostering “unsafe” employment conditions, including sexual harassment, and misrepresenting players’ chances of winning the $5 million grand prize on his new Amazon reality show, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by five anonymous participants.
The lawsuit claims that the multimillion-dollar firm behind YouTube’s most popular channel neglected to provide minimum wages, overtime compensation, uninterrupted lunch breaks, and rest time for rivals whose “work on the show was the entertainment product” provided by MrBeast.
MrBeast And Amazon Sued By Competitors From His $5M Reality Show Over Alleged ‘Unsafe’ Conditions
A representative for MrBeast, real name Jimmy Donaldson, told The Associated Press in an email that he had no comment on the latest complaint.
Donaldson’s “Beast Games” was dubbed the “biggest reality competition.” It was designed to put the North Carolina content producer in front of viewers outside of YouTube, where his record 316 million subscribers regularly watch his quirky challenges, which frequently include huge financial awards.
However, its inaugural Las Vegas shoot drew criticism before it had finished. Donaldson’s firms recruited 2,000 people in an initial tryout in July, with half of them going on to film the actual show in Toronto.
According to the lawsuit, contestants were unaware until they arrived that the Las Vegas pool had topped 1,000 entrants, severely lowering their odds of success. The lawsuit claims that the “false advertising” violates California business regulations, preventing sweepstake operators from “misrepresenting in any manner the odds of winning any prize.”
The five unnamed contestants also claimed that “limited sustenance” and “insufficient medical staffing” jeopardized their health.
The complaint claims that production workers produced a “toxic” work environment for women who were subjected to “sexual harassment” throughout the contest. According to a press release from the competitors’ lawyers, certain passages are significantly censored to comply with the “confidentiality provisions” they signed.
The lawsuit adds to the concerns, made by internet influencers in the aftermath of the shoot, that an unorganized set left some candidates injured and without frequent access to food and medication. Other volunteers told AP that they were given two light meals per day and MrBeast-branded chocolate bars.
MrBeast’s team is also facing new allegations that they “knowingly misclassified” the participants’ employment status to the Nevada Film Commission to obtain a state tax credit worth more than $2 million.
MrBeast And Amazon Sued By Competitors From His $5M Reality Show Over Alleged ‘Unsafe’ Conditions
The five competitors seek an order that MrBeast implement “workplace reforms” and pay “all wages owed,” among other remedies.
Last month, amid several public relations disasters, Donaldson ordered a comprehensive review of his YouTube empire’s internal culture and announced plans to mandate company-wide sensitivity training.
SOURCE | AP
Celebrity
Al Pacino Reveals He Nearly Died Of Covid-19 – And Gives His Thoughts On The Afterlife
Al Pacino revealed that he nearly died from COVID-19 in 2020 and expressed his thoughts on what happens after death.
In interviews with The New York Times and People magazine, the Academy Award-winning actor discussed getting the virus and temporarily losing his pulse.
Al, 84, told the Times in a wide-ranging interview that he started feeling “unusually not good” and soon got a fever and dehydration. “I was sitting there in my house, and I was gone,” he stated. “I didn’t have a pulse.”
Al Pacino Reveals He Nearly Died Of Covid-19 – And Gives His Thoughts On The Afterlife
“You’re here, and you’re not. I thought, “Wow, you don’t even have any memories.” You have nothing. “Strange porridge,” the “Scarface” actor claimed about his near-death encounter.
Within minutes, an ambulance arrived at Al’s house, and he regained consciousness with six paramedics and two physicians in his living room, he claimed.
“They had these outfits on that looked like they were from outer space or something,” he told the local newspaper. “It was very frightening to open your eyes and witness that. Everyone was surrounding me, and they said, ‘He’s back. “He’s here.”
Al told People that when he regained consciousness, he felt confused. “I looked around and I thought, ‘What happened to me?'”
Despite “everybody” believing he was dead, the movie veteran claimed he is not sure if he perished. “I thought I had died. I might not have. I honestly don’t think I have. “I know I made it,” he stated.
Al hailed his “great assistant” by swiftly alerting paramedics after his nurse confirmed that he no longer had a pulse.
“He got the people coming, because the nurse that was taking care of me said, ‘I don’t feel a pulse on this guy,'” remembered Al Pacino.
When asked if the health concern had impacted the way he lived his life, Pacino replied, “Not at all.”
However, this does not imply that the experience had no impact on the performer.
Al Pacino Reveals He Nearly Died Of Covid-19 – And Gives His Thoughts On The Afterlife
Pacino, who is presently prepping for a film rendition of Shakespeare’s “King Lear,” told The New York Times that the event had a philosophical significance.
“I did not see the white light or anything. “There is nothing there,” he explained. “As Hamlet says, ‘To be or not to be,’ and ‘The uncharted place from which no traveler returns.’ He then says two words: ‘no more.’ “It was no more,” Pacino concluded.
“You are gone. I’d never considered it in my life. But, you know, actors: It sounds good to say you died once. What happens when there is no more?
Pacino’s experiences are described in his book, “Sonny Boy,” which will be published on Tuesday.
SOURCE | AP
Celebrity
Supreme Court Declines To Hear Appeal From Singer R. Kelly, Convicted Of Child Sex Crimes
Washington — The Supreme Court declined to hear R. Kelly’s appeal on Monday, despite the fact that he is currently serving 20 years in jail for child rape charges in Chicago.
The Grammy Award-winning R&B artist, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, was convicted in 2022 of three counts of making child sexual abuse photos and three counts of enticing children for sex.
Supreme Court Declines To Hear Appeal From Singer R. Kelly, Convicted Of Child Sex Crimes
His lawyers contended that a lower statute of limitations on child sex crime prosecutions should have applied to actions committed in the 1990s. Current legislation allows charges to be filed when the accuser is still alive.
As is common, the justices did not explain why they declined to consider the case. There were no public dissents. Lower courts have previously rejected his arguments.
Supreme Court Declines To Hear Appeal From Singer R. Kelly, Convicted Of Child Sex Crimes
According to federal prosecutors, the video shows Robert sexually abusing a girl. The accuser, Jane, testified that she was 14 when the video was taken.
SOURCE | AP
Celebrity
Keanu Reeves Spins Out At Indianapolis Motor Speedway In Pro Auto Racing Debut
Indianapolis — Hollywood actor Keanu Reeves made his professional car racing debut on Saturday, spinning out at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Keanu Reeves Spins Out At Indianapolis Motor Speedway In Pro Auto Racing Debut
Keanu swerved into the grass without colliding on the exit of Turn 9, slightly more than halfway through the 45-minute race. He re-entered and started driving, indicating that he was uninjured.
Keanu, who qualified 31st out of 35 cars, raced as high as 21st and escaped a first-lap accident in Turn 14. Reeves placed 25th.
Keanu, 60, is racing in Indianapolis in the Toyota GR Cup, a Toyota spec-racing series and a support series for this weekend’s Indy 8 Hour sports car race. He has a second race on Sunday.
Keanu is driving the No. 92 BRZRKR automobile to promote his graphic novel, “The Book of Elsewhere.” He is teammates with Cody Jones from “Dude Perfect.”
Keanu Reeves Spins Out At Indianapolis Motor Speedway In Pro Auto Racing Debut
Keanu has previous racing experience, having competed in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach’s celebrity race. Reeves won the event in 2009.
SOURCE | AP
-
News1 week ago
The Biden Administration can go Ahead With Student Loan Forgiveness, Says a Federal Judge.
-
News1 week ago
Tesla Recalls 27,000 Cybertrucks Due To A Rearview Camera Issue
-
World1 week ago
Uber Hires Yandex Spinoff Ride-Hail and Autonomous Delivery With Avride
-
Tech1 week ago
Accenture and NVIDIA Collaborate to Enhance AI Implementation.
-
Tech1 week ago
Meta has started the Facebook Content Monetization Program.
-
Business1 week ago
McDonald’s Chicken Big Mac is Heading to the U.S. Next Week—for a Limited Time.