Contestants on huge reality TV show with $5,000,000 prize ‘barely fed’ and ‘refused medication’

Contestants on a new game show promising the biggest ever prize in TV history have claimed they were ‘not treated like human beings’.

The reality series Beast Games is set to air on Amazon Prime Video and will be fronted by the YouTube star MrBeast, real name Jimmy Donaldson.

The social media star, who has 308 million followers, is known for his videos featuring elaborate challenges and lucrative giveaways and has the most-subscribed channel on YouTube.

With a net worth of $500 million (£390 million), earlier this year his upcoming TV show was announced, with the reality competition series to have 1,000 contestants competing for a $5 million cash prize – the biggest single prize in the history of television and streaming.

However, those taking part have now slammed the conditions they’ve faced so far.

Before the televised event, 2,000 contestants were chosen to compete, doing so at Allegiant Stadium in Nevada last month.

Ahead of taking part, they were told of risks they could be expected to face in order to win, also signing liability waivers, acknowledging that the ‘activities may cause me death, illness, or serious bodily injury, including, but not limited to exhaustion, dehydration, overexertion, burns, and heat stroke’.

However, contestants have now made a series of damning claims against the production.

‘We signed up for the show, but we didn’t sign up for not being fed or watered or treated like human beings,’ one contestant told The New York Times on the condition of anonymity, as they had signed a non-disclosure agreement.

Several contestants said they went long stretches without being fed by production, and when they did it was ‘small and sporadic’.

One meal they were given, described by several different contestants, consisted of a small portion of cold oatmeal, a few pieces of raw vegetables and a single hard-boiled egg.

Some with allergies were not given alternatives, while others claimed they had medication withheld.

One woman also said that when she and other contestants were menstruating and had requested more underwear, they were told it was ‘not a medical emergency’.

Some staff members ‘yelled and cursed at contestants’ too.

When it came time for the challenges to start, competitors were tasked with pulling ropes attached to 10,000-pound (714 stone) weights as fast as possible.

However, when choosing teams, things became ‘chaotic and frightening’, with the production staff unable to control the crowd, who were ‘pushing and shoving’ each other.

One said she feared being trampled after ending up ‘almost horizontal’.

Another said she left the stadium ‘bruised and bleeding’ while others witnessed people ‘vomiting and appearing to pass out’.

‘We were treated horribly. They took on this challenge of 2,000 competitors. They should have known they needed an enormous crew to handle this correctly,’ one person said.

In a message to The Times, a spokesperson for MrBeast said the shoot was ‘unfortunately complicated by the CrowdStrike incident, extreme weather and other unexpected logistical and communications issues’.

They added that a formal review had been launched and they had taken steps to ensure that we learn from this experience’.

The next stage of the competition is due to be filmed in Canada in coming weeks.