What Happens When MrBeast Pays People to Face Fears?

TL;DR

Contestants earned money by facing phobias: one person sat in a bathtub of snakes to win his mom $10,000, Tareq let a tarantula crawl on him for 30 seconds for another $10,000, and Chandler sat in a tub of pickles to win his sister $20,000. Other challenges included grabbing cash past giant cockroaches, curling a one pound dumbbell for $1 per rep, and cracking a safe holding $20,000 while rats were added every 10 seconds.

Transcript

• This is a bathtub full of snakes. Hey there, little guy. (snake hissing) If any of you sits in this tub of snakes, I'll give your mom $10,000- - [Chandler] Oh, sorry mom. (buzzer rings) (group laughing) - He didn't even let me finish and he left. Like I said, if either of you sit in this tub of snakes, I'll give your mom 10 grand. - Are you gonna... Read More

Key Insights

• The core format of the video is paying people to overcome specific fears, with the reward usually going to a family member rather than the contestant, such as $10,000 to a mom for sitting in a tub of snakes.
• A professional snake handler named Brian was present for the snake challenge, and roughly 21 snakes total were placed on Chris, starting with one and followed by 20 more.
• The cockroach cash grab used a box holding $15,000, and the winner kept whatever he could pull out within about 60 seconds. Jeff, the show's sound guy, ended up grabbing $9,340.
• Timing in the challenges was deliberately unreliable. Jimmy admits he forgot to start the timer for Jeff and just counted in his head, then later skipped numbers in the countdown and repeated "two" before calling time.
• The curling challenge paid $1 per rep of a one pound dumbbell with no upper limit, and Noah reached about 20,000 curls, meaning the payout grew purely through endurance rather than difficulty.
• Chris treated the curl challenge as an investment, spending $400 on a Theragun at Best Buy and reassigning cameraman Frank to massage Noah's arm so the rep count and payout could keep climbing.
• The safe challenge combined a code guess with escalating pressure: a rat was added to the room every 10 seconds while Karl worked, and the code turned out to be the day before the contestant's birthday, unlocking $20,000 plus Chandler's stolen teddy bear.
• Fear is not proportional to actual danger, illustrated by Chandler saying he fears pickles more than snakes. The offer had to be raised from $10,000 to $20,000 for his sister before he would sit in the pickle tub, and his sister ultimately pushed him in.

Questions & Answers

Q: How much money did the snake tub challenge pay out?

The snake challenge paid $10,000, given to the contestant's mother rather than the contestant himself. Jimmy offered the money to whoever would sit in a bathtub full of snakes. Chandler left before the offer was even finished, so Chris took it. A professional snake handler named Brian threw on the first snake, and 20 more were added afterward, meaning around 21 snakes in total. Chris stayed in the tub and won his mom the $10,000.

Q: How much did Jeff win in the cockroach money grab?

Jeff, the show's sound guy, won $9,340. The setup was a box containing $15,000 with giant cockroaches sitting on top of it, and the rule was that he could keep whatever cash he pulled out within 60 seconds. Karl refused to attempt it, so Jeff was handed the challenge after giving up his microphone. Jimmy forgot to start the timer and counted in his head, estimating 50 seconds, and offered an extra second if Jeff petted a cockroach.

Q: What is the dumbbell curl challenge in this video?

Noah was paid $1 for every curl he completed with a one pound dumbbell, with no limit on duration or total payout. Jimmy told him he could go as long as he wanted and make as much money as he wanted, and Noah replied that he could be there for days and was winning a million dollars. By the time the crew checked back, he had completed about 20,000 curls, so the challenge tested endurance rather than strength.

Q: Why did Chris buy a Theragun during the video?

Chris took some of the cash from the curl challenge and drove to Best Buy to buy Noah a Theragun so his arm could recover and he could keep curling for more money. He chose the $400 model over a $600 version, saying he did not think they needed the more expensive one. He framed it as an investment that would make Noah more money. Afterward, cameraman Frank was reassigned to massage Noah's arm continuously.

Q: How did Karl open the safe with $20,000 inside?

Karl had to guess a safe code to win the contents for a random contestant named Mary. Jimmy gave misleading hints, including a fake claim that the code was under a giant rat, then revealed the code had something to do with the contestant's birthday. After a wrong attempt, Jimmy suggested the day after her birthday, then corrected himself to the day before, which worked. Inside were $20,000 and Chandler's stolen teddy bear.

Q: What was added to the room during the safe challenge?

A rat was added to the room every 10 seconds while Karl tried to crack the safe, with Chandler handling the releases. Jimmy also sped up the intervals, saying it had been about five seconds and that he liked to round up. Cheese was placed on the safe itself, drawing the rats toward Karl's work area. Karl reacted to being surrounded by rats while continuing to enter code guesses on the keypad.

Q: Why did Chandler sit in a tub of pickles instead of snakes?

Chandler said he is more afraid of pickles than snakes, which Jimmy called the dumbest thing he had ever heard. A previous video had shown Chandler refusing to eat a pickle for $5,000. Jimmy originally planned to offer his sister $10,000 but concluded there was zero chance Chandler would agree, so he raised it to $20,000 with a one minute deadline. Chandler's sister Cassidy eventually pushed him into the tub.

Q: What was the auditorium speech challenge and how much did it pay?

Randy was offered $10,000 in cash to read a prepared script in front of what he was told were a thousand people invited by a Tweet. The script praised YouTube and named creators including A Dream, PewDiePie, and Jacksepticeye, and Randy asked the crowd for a "Hoya!" After finishing, he learned the audience was actually a thousand mannequins plus Chris and Karl. Randy cried and said he would give the money to his mom and part of it to Mary Beth.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The video opens with a bathtub full of snakes and an offer of $10,000 to the mother of whoever sits in it. Chandler leaves immediately, but Chris agrees, and a professional snake handler named Brian adds a first snake before 20 more are piled on, winning Chris's mom the $10,000.

• A box containing $15,000 is covered with giant cockroaches, and Karl refuses to reach in. Jeff, the sound guy, is pulled in instead and given roughly 60 seconds, though Jimmy forgets to start the timer and counts in his head. Jeff walks away with $9,340 after being offered an extra second for petting a cockroach.

• Noah is paid $1 for every curl of a one pound dumbbell, with no cap on how long he can go, reaching about 20,000 curls. Chris spends $400 of the gym money on a Theragun from Best Buy rather than the $600 model, then assigns cameraman Frank to massage Noah's arm so he can keep curling.

• (Content reviewed on 2026-08-27.)