YouTuber MrBeast announces his engagement
YouTuber MrBeast has announced his engagement to girlfriend Thea Booysen. The 26-year-old revealed that he proposed on Christmas Day, sharing photos from the moment he got down on one knee.
MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is the world’s most popular YouTuber, with 340 million subscribers. His fiancée, Thea, originally from South Africa, also has her own YouTube channel, TheaBeasty, with nearly 40,000 subscribers. Now living in the U.S., the 27-year-old is a Twitch streamer and a published author.
In an interview with People magazine, MrBeast shared that he proposed to Thea while her family was visiting. Despite being known for his elaborate online stunts, he said he wanted the proposal to be “really private and intimate.” The couple also shared photos and footage of themselves and their dog wearing matching MrBeast-branded holiday sweaters.
When it comes to wedding plans, the couple has no intention of hosting an extravagant affair. “We’re thinking of doing it somewhere on an island, where we’re far away from just about everybody,” Thea told People. “It’s going to be nice, but it’s certainly going to be intimate, with close family and friends.”
Thea has previously defended MrBeast following allegations made against him last year. When accusations of grooming were leveled against his former co-host Ava Kris Tyson—allegations MrBeast later called “baseless”—Thea reportedly wrote on her own channel that she “wouldn’t be with him” if the allegations were true.
The couple was recently seen together at a red carpet event for MrBeast’s new series, Beast Games, a show inspired by Netflix’s Squid Game. The series promises to be the world’s largest live game show, with 1,000 contestants competing for a $5 million cash prize. However, the show has faced controversy. In September, legal documents filed on behalf of contestants alleged they were “shamelessly exploited” and faced sexual harassment. While neither MrBeast nor Amazon have formally responded, MrBeast addressed the claims on X, stating that they had been “blown out of proportion.”
The show, which began releasing episodes on December 19, has also received criticism from reviewers. The Guardian gave it a two-star review, calling it “ugly and tasteless,” while Decider criticized it for “taking advantage of people’s greed.” IGN labeled it “shallow” and “dull.” In response to the IGN review, MrBeast expressed on X that it was “sad” for the show, which involved the work of “a thousand people,” to be labeled a 2/10 based on one person’s opinion. He stated that the series continues to perform well globally on Amazon.