Doctor reveals how close he came to not helping MrBeast “cure blindness”

Dr. Jeff Levenson, the surgeon integral to MrBeast’s ‘curing blindness’ video, reveals why he nearly hung up on the popular YouTuber.

Popular YouTuber Jimmy “MrBeast” Donaldson has been garnering even more mainstream attention lately thanks to his latest video where he helped 1,000 people who suffer from cataracts regain their eyesight.

While overall internet discourse surrounding the video has centered around whether this philanthropic act is superficial or truly selfless, the sheer amount of effort and cooperation from people like Dr. Jeff Levenson to make this video possible can’t be understated.

Now, Dr. Levenson—the surgeon who was integral to performing the surgeries seen in MrBeast’s video—has revealed he nearly hung up on the YouTuber when first approached about the idea.

Doctor in MrBeast’s ‘curing blindness’ video nearly turned him down

As revealed in a post on SEE International’s FaceBook page, Levenson explained how his partnership with MrBeast came to be.

Levenson said he “got a call from a stranger” who told him his name was MrBeast and that he was “kind of a big thing on YouTube.” Levenson goes on to explain that MrBeast had seen his TED Talk on ending preventable blindness and reached out to him about a plan to restore sight to thousands of people affected around the world.

“I had never heard of MrBeast so, I almost hung up. But I gratefully did not hang up.”

It’s no understatement to say that Dr. Levenson’s cooperation was a massive part of the video’s success, as it appeared that the ophthalmologist performed many of the surgeries present throughout.

Additionally, MrBeast donated $100,000 to See International, to which Levenson said it would “bring sight to thousands of people,” on top of those that they worked together to help.

At the time of writing, MrBeast’s video has 71 million views and is still ranked number 16 on YouTube’s trending page after three days. The impact and attention gathered by MrBeast’s video to—at the very least—raise awareness of preventable blindness is something the content creator and Levenson is an incredible feat.