- Chris Tyson was flooded with transphobic backlash after announcing they were on HRT.
- One of the most visible pieces of backlash was a video saying it could hurt MrBeast's business.
Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, called out "transphobia" Thursday after a YouTuber made a video saying the MrBeast star Chris Tyson, who recently announced they had undergone hormone replacement therapy (HRT), would be a "nightmare" for the star.
Tyson, a well-known childhood friend of Donaldson's who regularly appears in his videos, announced on Twitter last week that they had been undergoing HRT for the last two months and said "informed consent HRT" saved their life.
The reactions were mostly supportive, although there was also a torrent of transphobic backlash to Tyson's more feminine look on Twitter and TikTok, with many comment sections flooded with bigoted remarks.
—MrBeast (@MrBeast) April 13, 2023
One of the most viral pieces of backlash was a video from the commentary YouTuber SunnyV2, who has over 3.3 million subscribers. In a video posted Thursday titled "Why Chris Will Soon Be A Nightmare For MrBeast," the creator suggested that Tyson's decision to go on HRT could negatively affect Donaldson's business by alienating a chunk of his audience. He said it forced Donaldson to support Tyson or risk the consequences.
"Jimmy has no option but to publicly express acceptance of Chris' transition, as silence, or even worse, disapproval, would come with obvious severe repercussions," the YouTuber said.
Replying to a screenshot of the video thumbnail posted on Twitter, Donaldson called out the video's transphobic message.
"Yeah, this is getting absurd," Donaldson wrote. "Chris isn't my 'nightmare' he's my fucken friend and things are fine. All this transphobia is starting to piss me off."
Donaldson's reply has amassed nearly 300,000 likes in less than a day, with many users cheering him on for standing up for his friend.
The video has also received significant criticism in its comment section.
"Chris isn't a character, they're a person and a friend to Jimmy," said one comment with hundreds of likes. "It's honestly pathetic and it baffles me that people are making such a big deal out of someone trying to be happy and their normal selves," another user wrote.
Donaldson has publicly supported Tyson before, writing heart emojis and other positive messages on Tyson's tweets, though this is the first time he called out transphobia directly.
Tyson has also called out the hate and refuted bigoted claims that they "abandoned" the son they share with their ex-wife by deciding to go on HRT.
"I have his love and support and that is all I need. I'm doing this for him," Tyson wrote in a tweet. "If that confuses you, educate yourself. If that makes you mad. Leave. Simple."
Insider has reached out to Tyson and MrBeast's team for comment.