Hey Reader,
What's up, Cory here. 👋🏼

On the 1st Friday of every month, (1 day late this month 😅) I give you behind-the-scenes looks at the latest and greatest movies.

Plus, enter to win a FREE movie ticket each month (see below)! 😁

This month, I'm switching things up to talk about a TV show I was on.

"Beast Games" (December 19, 2024)

Creators: Tyler Conklin, Sean Klitzner, MrBeast

I started out in a sea of 2,000 people in a MrBeast YouTube video (currently 161 million views).

It was absolutely mind-boggling to see that many people—even the show runners could hardly believe it.

Nothing like this has ever been done at this scale.

Every one in that arena knew they were a part of making history.

Yep! I got to do this with my brother!

To say that this was the coolest experience of my life is a gross understatement.

The sheer scale of everything on set was massive and almost other-worldly.

I have so many stories from this that it's hard to pick just one for this newsletter.

But you're probably wondering...

Is Beast Games worth watching?

This show received a lot of criticism from both critics and audience members.

Some viewers complained about the lack of focus on contestants, noting that referring to participants by numbers made it difficult to empathize with them.

Others felt like it was basically a Squid Game knockoff, just without the dark and intense vibes.

However, fans of the show praised the show's high production value, engaging challenges, and appreciating the ambition of the competition.

Love it or hate it, there's no denying that Beast Games had people talking—and watching.

With many 10s of millions tuning in, it clearly struck a chord with viewers.

It was ranked #1 on Prime Video for a couple months and is currently #4.

While I didn't get much screen time, or hundreds of thousands of dollars, I was incredibly grateful for my experience on the show and the months of production and making new friends along the way.

And how cool is it that I got to experience it all with my brother.

Rip 60 and 391. 💔 🫡

Sadly, Caleb got out in episode 1, and me shortly after in episode 2 when I made it into Beast City.

Would I do it again?

Although I didn't win any cash prizes (I even turned down $100K 😅), the amount of friends I made and unforgettable memories I have from being a part of this show is more than priceless.

I would also hope for more integrity around gameplay fairness.

The real reason I got out in episode 2 was actually causing a problem behind the scenes on whether a situation was fair or not.

3rd parties were involved—neither with the Beast Team nor Amazon—as an attempt to be unbiased.

Someone broke the rules during the game by being physical with another player, which prevented what would have been a tie between the two teams.

Aside from that personal gripe, I would 100% go back for a Season 2.

Would definitely recommend you try it out starting with Episode 0 on YouTube!

Not because I'm in it, but because this show broke over 44 Guinness World Records, and even though you don't get to know the characters incredibly well, the things this show pulls off is undeniably entertaining.

Feel free to ask me any questions about my experience. 🙂

Maybe I should make a YouTube video with my behind-the-scenes stories. 🤔

Quiz Your Knowledge!