Jimmy Donaldson , aka MrBeast recently shared a post on X that has stirred controversy online. The YouTuber shared a photoshopped image of himself with gorillas, with the caption: “Need 100 men to test this, any volunteers?”. The post faced a backlash from animal rights group PETA or People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals who replied to it stating “100 men vs. a gorilla? Maybe try 100 reasons to leave animals out of your content instead…”.
MrBeast’s post, likely a joke, taps into ethical debates about animal welfare in entertainment, a concern some netizens raised as potential animal cruelty, aligning with PETA’s advocacy but clashing with his audience’s appetite for viral, over-the-top challenges.
MrBeast's subscribers reaches 389 million
MrBeast, whose real name is James Stephen Donaldson, is an American YouTuber. He was born on May 7, 1998, in Wichita, Kansas.
As of April 2025, MrBeast's main YouTube channel has over 389 million subscribers, making it the most-subscribed channel on the platform. Donaldson began his YouTube career in 2012 under the handle "MrBeast6000." His early content included Let's Play videos and estimates of other YouTubers' wealth. He gained significant attention in 2017 with a video in which he counted to 100,000, which went viral. Since then, his videos have become more extravagant, often involving significant cash prizes and complex stunts.
He also operates several other channels, including Beast Reacts, MrBeast Gaming , MrBeast 2, and Beast Philanthropy. Beyond YouTube, Donaldson has launched business ventures such as MrBeast Burger and the chocolate brand Feastables.
MrBeast’s success mantra revealed
Recently, he revealed ‘secret’ to his viral success in what he terms as ‘purple cow effect' – creating content that's strikingly unique. He emphasizes that achieving this requires tackling incredibly difficult and original ideas.
In a Diary of a CEO podcast, Donaldson said: “The thing is, to go viral, you have to do something that’s never been done before. If you’re driving down the road, and you see a cow, who cares? It’s a cow. But if you’re driving down the road, and you see a purple cow, you’ve never seen that before, and it’s something you aren’t expecting. You’re going to go, ‘Holy s***.’ You’re going to tell your friend about it. You’re going to remember that. You’ll probably even think about it randomly once every couple of years: Why the f**k was there a purple cow?”
“You can apply that same analogy to ideas. When you’re scrolling through social media to find a video to watch, there are things that have been done before. You’ll scroll past it, and you’ll never think about it again. Just like you’ll never think about a cow on the side of the road. And then there are the purple cow ideas—which is what I try to do—that make you go, ‘What the f**k? I’ve never seen that. I have to click this or I’m not going to be able to sleep tonight,” Donaldson added.
100 men vs. a gorilla? Maybe try 100 reasons to leave animals out of your content instead…
— PETA (@peta) April 28, 2025
MrBeast’s post, likely a joke, taps into ethical debates about animal welfare in entertainment, a concern some netizens raised as potential animal cruelty, aligning with PETA’s advocacy but clashing with his audience’s appetite for viral, over-the-top challenges.
MrBeast's subscribers reaches 389 million
MrBeast, whose real name is James Stephen Donaldson, is an American YouTuber. He was born on May 7, 1998, in Wichita, Kansas.
As of April 2025, MrBeast's main YouTube channel has over 389 million subscribers, making it the most-subscribed channel on the platform. Donaldson began his YouTube career in 2012 under the handle "MrBeast6000." His early content included Let's Play videos and estimates of other YouTubers' wealth. He gained significant attention in 2017 with a video in which he counted to 100,000, which went viral. Since then, his videos have become more extravagant, often involving significant cash prizes and complex stunts.
He also operates several other channels, including Beast Reacts, MrBeast Gaming , MrBeast 2, and Beast Philanthropy. Beyond YouTube, Donaldson has launched business ventures such as MrBeast Burger and the chocolate brand Feastables.
MrBeast’s success mantra revealed
Recently, he revealed ‘secret’ to his viral success in what he terms as ‘purple cow effect' – creating content that's strikingly unique. He emphasizes that achieving this requires tackling incredibly difficult and original ideas.
In a Diary of a CEO podcast, Donaldson said: “The thing is, to go viral, you have to do something that’s never been done before. If you’re driving down the road, and you see a cow, who cares? It’s a cow. But if you’re driving down the road, and you see a purple cow, you’ve never seen that before, and it’s something you aren’t expecting. You’re going to go, ‘Holy s***.’ You’re going to tell your friend about it. You’re going to remember that. You’ll probably even think about it randomly once every couple of years: Why the f**k was there a purple cow?”
“You can apply that same analogy to ideas. When you’re scrolling through social media to find a video to watch, there are things that have been done before. You’ll scroll past it, and you’ll never think about it again. Just like you’ll never think about a cow on the side of the road. And then there are the purple cow ideas—which is what I try to do—that make you go, ‘What the f**k? I’ve never seen that. I have to click this or I’m not going to be able to sleep tonight,” Donaldson added.
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