MrBeast's plan to reach a new generation of fans

Business Insider

2 days ago

MrBeast has been in the lab cooking up an animated show that he hopes will hook the next generation on his videos.
The world's biggest YouTuber announced a new anime-style series coming in October called "MrBeast Lab: The Descent," based on a wildly popular toy line he launched last summer.
MrBeast and his team partnered with Australia-based Moose Toys for both the animated show and his "MrBeast Lab" toys. Those action figures debuted last July and became the best-selling new toy property in 2024 across 12 leading global markets tracked by retail sales data provider Circana, the company confirmed to Business Insider.
Stephen Davis, the chief franchise officer at Moose Toys, told BI that his team had been talking with MrBeast about making an animated series for a while. The success of their MrBeast-inspired toys last holiday season convinced both sides to make an animated series that would fuel sales for new versions of their toys — and vice versa.
"With the launch of this next product line, it was the right time to now move into animation," Davis said.
Besides generating millions of YouTube views and selling tons of toys, MrBeast — whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson — is moving into animation to grow his already-massive audience, specifically by introducing himself to younger viewers.
"We wanted to create a show that was as inviting to a younger demo as it was to an older demo," Davis said.
Growing the tent to fit Gen Alpha
Animation isn't just for kids, as the recent breakout success of Netflix's "Kpop Demon Hunters" demonstrates.
Davis emphasized that point, saying that the "MrBeast Lab" show's "modern anime flavor" could help expand the fandom while also appealing to MrBeast's current YouTube subscriber base of over 418 million.
Still, industry insiders told BI they thought viewership for MrBeast's animated show would skew younger than his Gen Z -heavy following.
"He's filling a white space for his audience," said Amanda Cioletti, the VP of content and strategy for the licensing group at market-making firm Informa Markets.
Gen Alpha children, between the ages of one and 15, appear to be a target demographic for this cartoon.
Amanda Klecker, SVP of marketing and franchises at toy and kids' media company Pocket.watch, called developing both a show and toy line targeting a particular audience "a smart move."
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Davis said the audience for the "MrBeast Lab" action figures is kids ages six and older, though he added adults in the so-called "kid-ult" community also buy the toys.
MrBeast isn't the only content creator who's dabbling in toys.
Kid-focused YouTubers like Ms. Rachel, Ryan of "Ryan's World," and the girl from "Kids Diana Show" have toy lines to reach preschoolers. STEM YouTuber Mark Rober, whose audience is older, is also getting into the mix, with a toy line from Moose Toys coming in 2026.
More than a cash grab
MrBeast and Moose Toys dream of a virtuous cycle in which toy sales spark interest in their show, and the other way around.
Cioletti said that MrBeast likely launched the toys first to feel out the market before making the cartoon.
While toy sales data from Circana suggests that the MrBeast-Moose Toys tie-up is lucrative, Davis declined to comment on the terms or structure of his firm's partnership with MrBeast.
Klecker said MrBeast's approach to brand building shows he's focused on staying power across generations.
"What I appreciate about what MrBeast does is there isn't a 'label slap,'" Klecker said, referring to a hasty money grab trading on a famous name. "He's very thoughtful, it seems, about his brand building and his brand strategy."
Smart brand partnerships fulfill unmet needs, she said, adding that MrBeast seems to be on the right track so far.