“It makes me sad to see …”

Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MRBeast, reacted to the controversy for a VLOG that he recorded when visiting the old Maya cities in southeast Mexico. The Youtuber published a video with the title “I survived 100 hours in an old temple” on May 10 and received millions of views in the shortest possible time. In the clip, Mrbeast and his team explore historical sites, swimming in cenotes, eating in Maya style and spending a night in a temple. The video condemned Mexican civil servants, archaeologists and the public that accused the Youtuber to exploit the cultural heritage. The video was also criticized by the Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (Inah), which said that they had given Mrbeast to film on the websites, but not to monetize the content or to use it for advertising for its products.

Now, over the weekend, Mrbeast has published an explanation in which he announced his true intent to keep an eye on the country and reveal that there was no problem with the shooting, since he received the permission of government agencies and even left archaeologists through everything. He also informed a picture that shows a message from the governor of the state, and defended the Mrbeast and his team on the filming.

I saw many stories about our most recent video in Mexico and wanted to clarify some false things. I and my team have great respect for Mexican and Mayan culture and people. We made this video to inspire people around the world, more about their … pic.twitter.com/ccro4hu1x5

– Mrbeast (@Mrbeast) May 18, 2025

“I have seen many stories about our most recent video in Mexico and wanted to eliminate some false things. I and my team have great respect for the Mexican and Mayan culture and people. We made this video to learn people around the world to learn more about their culture, as we did with our pyramid video.

“We turned full permits that follow the guidelines, representatives of government agencies that followed us to ensure Mexican archaeologists to ensure that we were correct and representatives of the locations to ensure that we follow the rules. The governor of the state, whom we have taken into our defense,” he added.

The Youtuber also made it clear that the officials knew that he would promote his chocolate brand, and ensured that he did not film any content near national monuments. “You were aware that we mentioned Feastables in the video, but for the respect of the websites it was shot by all national monuments on site. The dinner scene in which I made the Feastal joke was not near Mayan,” he wrote.

Read also | “He got 8 LPA:

The Youtuber also shared the philanthropic work that his team carried out in Mexico. “We also never planned to share this, but as always, my hand is forced by false headlines – we have financed wells and water projects in the state behind the scenes. I also worked with Inah at a fund to support local Mexican archeology and new discoveries because I wanted to contribute to culture for the film,” said Mrbeast.

“I hope to return one day and continue to tell how great culture with the world is to see sad that this is distorted,” he concluded.

In particular, Mrbeast's statement is made after the Ministry of Culture in Mexico has declared that it would impose sanctions and take legal steps against the Youtuber because it is supposed to be incorrectly presented and violated the intended use of cultural culture sites.

The Inah replied to the controversy by finding that the visit and recording were carried out as an answer to “formal inquiries”. The government agency said that its employees were present during the shooting to ensure the security and compliance with guidelines for the preservation of the preservation. It was also confirmed that the shooting was carried out in accordance with the law. However, it was emphasized that several scenes, including the stressed helicopter landing, drone flights in the Kukulkan pyramid and the use of an old mask were produced after production.

Regardless of this, the Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said that the “broadcast” was allowed, but she asked the Inah, “under the conditions in which this approval was granted”.