Jimmy Donaldson — better known to his hundreds of millions of online followers as MrBeast — has leveraged his vast social media audience to sell everything from Beast-branded burgers, snack packs and chocolate bars to water bottles, toys, basketballs and $65 hoodies.
Now, he’s aiming to sell his followers an unlikely new product: a novel.
Donaldson is teaming up with the mega-best-selling author James Patterson on a thriller, which will be published by HarperCollins in 2026, with a simultaneous global release in 15 languages. The plot sounds like an over-the-top version of one of MrBeast’s viral YouTube videos, competitions that often offer enormous sums of cash to contestants who can prevail in absurd challenges (“Survive 100 Days Trapped, Win $500,000”).
The novel will center on an extreme global contest, in which 100 players compete to prove their leadership skills by surviving life-threatening tests in dangerous locations around the world. In a battle to win the billion-dollar prize, participants form relationships and betray one another as they struggle to avoid elimination, or death.
The fight to land the project also turned into an intense competition among publishers, who were tantalized by the viral marketing possibilities of signing a social media star with 500 million followers. News of the collaboration began circulating in March, with reports of a heated bidding war with offers in the eight-figure range. HarperCollins did not disclose the financial details of the deal, which was negotiated by Robert Barnett and Deneen Howell of Williams & Connolly on behalf of Patterson, and by Byrd Leavell and Albert Lee at United Talent Agency representing MrBeast.
It’s unclear whether MrBeast’s massive online audience will translate into book sales. Publishers have tried for decades to harness the marketing power of social media stars, with varying success. But MrBeast is a star of a different magnitude.
“He’s such a smart operator in understanding the social media algorithms, what drives engagement, what drives activation,” said Brian Murray, president and chief executive of HarperCollins. “One of the challenges we have in publishing is there’s so much noise out there in the media and entertainment landscape, and trying to break through with books can be difficult.”
Donaldson rose to online fame with stunt videos centered around daredevil spectacles (“I Survived the 5 Deadliest Places on Earth,” “I Paid a Real Assassin to Try to Kill Me”) and guerrilla-style philanthropy (“Tipping Waitresses With Real Gold Bars,” “Giving a Random Homeless Man $10,000”). His formula has proved remarkably popular, drawing some 390 million YouTube subscribers. One of his biggest videos, “$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!,” posted in 2021, has more than 788 million views.
His approach — often using boatloads of money to bait people into extreme stunts — has drawn criticism from skeptics as well as contestants. Last year, a group of people who participated in “Beast Games,” Donaldson’s reality competition show, sued Donaldson and the production companies behind the show, accusing them of exposing contestants to “dangerous circumstances and conditions.” But dissent and lawsuits haven’thampered the growth of Donaldson’s business, or his ambition.
In a statement released through HarperCollins, Donaldson said he was drawn to writing fiction because he hoped to encourage his audience and others to read more, a goal he shares with Patterson, who has helped to launch and fund literacy programs for young readers. “We’re both passionate about inspiring people around the world to read more, and I hope this also opens doors for other creators looking to get published,” Donaldson said.
After Donaldson told his agents at UTA that he wanted to expand into fiction, they introduced him to Patterson, a blockbuster author and one of Donaldson’s favorite writers. Patterson came to visit Donaldson at his studio in Greenville, N.C., where they discussed ideas for several hours, eventually settling on a thriller concept that was on brand for MrBeast.
Patterson has collaborated with high-profile figures before, among them Bill Clinton, Viola Davis and Dolly Parton. To date, his novels have reportedly sold more than 400 million copies. But a MrBeast collaboration offers access to a massive new audience of younger readers raised on social media.
The novel with MrBeast, which does not yet have a title or a release date, will be published in the United States by the HarperCollins imprint William Morrow.
In a meeting with HarperCollins executives, Donaldson seemed enthusiastic about using his online clout to sell books in creative ways, Murray said.
“He’s an unbelievable young entrepreneur,” he said. “He’s like: Failure is not an option. I’m going to move these things.”