PewDiePie was the face of YouTube for years, but fame doesn't guarantee a life free of hurdles. Like anyone, he's had to deal with a ton of scary, tragic, and outright bizarre troubles.
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00:00PewDiePie was the face of YouTube for years, but fame doesn't guarantee a life free of hurdles.
00:05Like anyone, he's had to deal with a ton of scary, tragic, and outright bizarre troubles.
00:11Fans of PewDiePie know that he's often professed his love of Japan and Japanese culture,
00:16and that passion eventually led the YouTuber to move there with his wife, Marzia.
00:20Although this may seem like a dream come true on paper, it's come with its own set of struggles.
00:24In late 2019, PewDiePie and Marzia were robbed while they were away from the property.
00:29The event was extremely hard on the couple, leaving a long-term impact on their mental health.
00:34In a video posted a few months after the incident, PewDiePie explained that none
00:37of his own belongings were stolen, and they were able to get some of the robbery on film.
00:42However, he revealed that most of Marzia's valuables were taken from the house.
00:46PewDiePie was frustrated to see many of his detractors celebrating the robbery on social
00:50media, pointing out that even though he wasn't personally impacted financially,
00:54the entire event was a massive breach of privacy and safety.
00:58In an Instagram post, Marzia wrote,
01:00"...I can't hide the shock and sadness with it all being taken away just like that."
01:04It would be a while before the couple felt comfortable in their home again.
01:09I think it's time to end the Subscribe to PewDiePie movement, or me."
01:12In one of 2019's most horrific moments, a shooter in New Zealand targeted two mosques
01:18and killed a total of 51 people. The shooter also referenced the YouTuber during the attack,
01:23saying,
01:23"...subscribed to PewDiePie as he live-streamed the incident."
01:26This quote was pulled directly from the YouTuber's then-recent
01:29campaign to gain the most subscribed channel on the platform.
01:33While the exact reasoning behind the shooter's reference is unknown,
01:36the call-out was mentally and emotionally damaging for PewDiePie. It also kicked off
01:40a high level of internet discourse, with some people partially blaming PewDiePie's
01:45controversial sense of humor for the incident. Others believed that PewDiePie's influential
01:49virality inspired the shooter to co-opt the meme in an attempt to spread his own message
01:54in the largest way possible. As noted by Slate, a rising number of white supremacists had taken
01:59to using the phrase around this point in time. PewDiePie appeared to be extremely unsettled by
02:04all of this, telling viewers that he was sickened having his name uttered by this person, and that
02:08he didn't want hate to win. Explaining that he wished to distance his name from this tragedy,
02:13the YouTuber called for an end to the Subscribe to PewDiePie movement.
02:17While some people accused him of normalizing hateful rhetoric through his channel,
02:21other YouTubers came to PewDiePie's defense. In a heartfelt message on X, formerly Twitter,
02:25Markiplier asserted his belief that PewDiePie had no part in the shooting, writing in part,
02:30"'You had nothing to do with this. Full stop.'"
02:34We all have our vices, but PewDiePie might have gone a little too far with his,
02:38according to the YouTuber himself. He detailed his complicated relationship
02:42with alcohol in a video titled, I Can Quit Whenever, Honestly.
02:46Just sniffing a good whiskey makes me feel things, man. I'm never drinking again.
02:54He explained that he noticed a problem with his drinking when he attempted to cut back on his
02:57alcohol consumption, which in turn triggered a feeling that he needed whiskey to continue
03:02functioning normally. In the end, PewDiePie ended up completely cutting out all alcohol.
03:06During his darkest moments, especially while suffering from his whiskey addiction,
03:10PewDiePie said that he embraced the philosophical practice of stoicism,
03:14which emphasizes enduring hardship without letting emotions get the better of you,
03:18and ultimately helped him remain focused on quitting.
03:21Fans were quick to congratulate PewDiePie for his accomplishment. Many viewers were also grateful
03:26that PewDiePie shared this vulnerable moment, especially since his story could possibly help
03:30other people in their own struggles with addiction.
03:32PewDiePie's pugs, Maya and Edgar, have been important parts of his channel for years.
03:37Maya, an adorable and plucky one-eyed pug, was always a wonderful addition to any video she
03:42appeared in. Many fans were shocked and saddened to hear about Maya's tragic passing in 2022.
03:47The 17-year-old pug had been dealing with some medical complications over the preceding few years,
03:52and PewDiePie was clearly devastated to lose his old friend.
03:56Taking to Instagram, the YouTuber wrote,
03:58"'I will miss you so much, and I already do. You will always be in my heart, Maya.'"
04:03A great number of fans shared their condolences on Instagram and in the comments on older videos
04:08featuring Maya, saying they'd also miss her very much. As PewDiePie himself stated,
04:12"'17 years is a long time for a pug, but no time in the world would have ever been enough.'"
04:18With millions of fans constantly expecting so much of him, not to mention a large number
04:22of detractors, PewDiePie gradually felt the pressure of his YouTube career grow stronger.
04:27At the height of his fame, the YouTuber spent much of his time fielding justifiable criticism
04:32of some offensive jokes and fending off attacks from internet trolls at every turn. It all added
04:36up to give PewDiePie high levels of stress and anxiety. In fact, the pressure from fans
04:41and the media essentially fed into PewDiePie's addiction to YouTube, making the content creator
04:46feel that he had to constantly perform well or risk losing everything. From here, PewDiePie
04:51felt that he was starting to fall into a rut with his YouTube career, as he was always looking for
04:55new ways to stay relevant. The constant pressure didn't reflect what he wanted from his job,
05:00and he was eventually convinced that he needed some kind of break,
05:03even if it meant losing a lot of money in the process. On the plus side, the break gave him
05:07time to think about his priorities, and he came back with a healthier approach to creating content.
05:12In a Q&A video from late 2020, Pewds explained,
05:16"...I just enjoy making videos without caring what a group of people that don't watch me think."
05:21While at one point he may have felt trapped by his job,
05:24PewDiePie now only makes videos when he feels like it, and that seems to suit him just fine.
05:29PewDiePie has finally settled down into a more peaceful routine in Japan,
05:33with a much more relaxed YouTube posting schedule and far less media attention.
05:37PewDiePie seems to be in a much better place when compared to his previous high-pressure lifestyle.
05:42PewDiePie and his wife have had the time to start a family, having a son in summer 2023.
05:47However, though PewDiePie has been happy with his time in Japan so far,
05:50the YouTuber has expressed some problems with the ways in which the country's
05:54health care restrictions affected his time with his newborn infant.
05:57In a video reviewing his first full year in Japan,
06:00the YouTuber explained that his son's first day was not what he'd hoped.
06:03PewDiePie was already on edge because Marzia's pregnancy had not been without complications,
06:08and she experienced a few scary moments during labor. After dropping Marzia off at the hospital,
06:13the YouTuber was only allowed to see his wife and son for a few hours at a time,
06:17which left him distraught. The YouTuber would later remark that he felt conflicted
06:21by the whole experience, saying,
06:23But sometimes there are rules that just don't make any sense.