Dan Avidan: Is the Game Grumps host actually a sexual predator?

Every week seems to bring a new YouTube scandal – a scandal that usually takes a popular YouTuber one step closer to cancellation. Take Dan Avidan, for example. Even though there were already rumors & allegations of sexual misconduct against the Game Grumps host, things have definitely kicked into high gear this week. Leaked videos and text messages, that kind of deal.

So what’s the deal with Dan Avidan now? What did he do and how did he get caught? For that, we have four words that give everyone chills: let’s turn to Reddit. (Well, first, let’s look at a tweet referencing the Reddit thread.)

*SERIOUS* CW: Grooming

Game Grumps’s Dan Avidan exposed for allegedly grooming younger fans. Dan at one point sent a video to an alleged victim suggesting they have sex in a hot tub. Dan also allegedly requested nudes from the fan, according to dotesports. pic.twitter.com/54JBjiFtjE

— Def Noodles (@defnoodles) March 22, 2021

Reddited

You know you’ve ignited passions of the wrong kind when there’s a subreddit exclusively dedicated to ranting and venting about you. Such is the case with Game Grumps and the subreddit r/rantgrumps – a forum focused on criticizing the popular YouTube gaming comedy duo that Dan Avidan belongs to. Talk about the perfect place to drop some incriminating evidence against Avidan.

The post that got the ball rolling on r/rantgrumps accused Dan Avidan of grooming an underage fan, eventually having sex with her when she turned eighteen, and ghosting her immediately after. To support the claims, the post included a bunch of documents provided by the alleged victim. There are several screenshots showing incriminating text messages. There’s also a video that might confirm Avidan’s involvement.

In the video, someone who sounds like Dan Avidan is showing off the fancy hot tub in his hotel room and telling the future recipient of the video he wished she was there so they could have sex in it. Coupled with the texts, it all paints a pretty explicit picture. Soon enough, the video & texts started making the rounds on Twitter.

Belt notches

Anyone who’s been following Dan Avidan’s history of alleged misconduct shouldn’t be surprised by the latest chapter in the saga. As discussed in the r/rantgrumps post and online publications like Dot Esports and Newsweek, this isn’t the first time the YouTuber has been accused of grooming, having sex with, and ghosting younger fans.

The most high-profile allegation against Dan Avidan took place in 2019, when his former assistant Kati Schwartz, inspired by the #MeToo movement, created a play called Bad People. The play “recontextualized” Schwartz’s experience with the YouTuber. Schwartz added fuel to the fire with a 2020 Instagram post where she referred to being “manipulated” and “abused” by a “charismatic, rich and famous man.”

Kati Schwartz didn’t have much to say about the most recent accusations against Dan Avidan, but what she said was pretty damning. Schwartz used an Instagram Story to say: “To be clear: Dan Avidan is a dangerous man and a [predator]. I won’t answer more questions but there it is, folks. Let my play and my writing speak for itself.”

Keeping quiet

Dan Avidan and Game Grumps have yet to come forward with a response to the latest accusations. Of course, that hasn’t kept the internet from reacting to the allegations – and the negative reactions aren’t limited to the r/rantgrumps subreddit. The forum, however, is where most of the accusations have been collected & analyzed.

In fact, based on all the allegations and documentation, users at r/rantgrumps have established Dan Avidan’s M.O. As reported by Dot Esports, “He’d approach women, cultivate a relationship with them to make it seem as if he wanted to date them or have a serious relationship with them, arrange to meet them for a weekend, then after the first sexual encounter or a single weekend would ditch further contact with them.”

Granted, that unfortunately sounds like the M.O. from a lot of people. But when you factor in the age of Dan Avidan’s alleged targets, that’s when it gets extra dicey. Avidan’s Reddit nemeses believe the YouTuber was actively doing this from late 2013 to 2017.

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What do you think of the allegations against Dan Avidan? Let us know in the comments!