Good morning. Yesterday, KSI announced he’s leaving Sidemen after 13 years with the group to pursue better work-life balance. 

“The Sidemen deserves someone who can give 100% and right now I know I can't do that. It just wouldn’t be fair on the boys and it wouldn’t be fair to you or myself,” KSI said in a video.

It’s a move that can only be compared to Zayn Malik leaving One Direction in 2015.

— Hannah Doyle & Syd Cohen

Today’s lineup:

This weekend felt like a pivotal moment for creators in Hollywood—the top two films at the global box office were directed by YouTube creators. 

Creator POV: “I don't think there's that much of a difference from a technical perspective of making a movie versus a YouTube video,” Markiplier said on stage at Press Publish LA last week. “It's just the scale at which it is done.”

What do these creator-filmmakers have in common? Enormous success. But the different routes they all took to get there illustrate the diversity that makes this creator niche so unique.

Here’s the breakdown, by the numbers →

Backrooms
Cost: $10M
How it was made: Adapted from Parsons’ short film series as a co-production between A24, 21 Laps, Chernin Entertainment, and Blumhouse-Atomic Monster
Distribution: A24 distributed to over 3,400 theaters in North America (with more globally)

Iron Lung
Cost: Just under $5M
How it was made: Markiplier self-financed, wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the film
Distribution: Film distribution company Centurion distributed to over 4,600 theaters worldwide

Obsession
Cost: $750K
How it was made: Production company Blumhouse-Atomic Monster picked up Barker’s original script, shooting it in 20 days
Distribution: Focus Features picked up the rights to the film at TIFF in 2025 and distributed to over 2,000 theaters globally

What does this mean for creators? They’re getting audiences to show up, and Hollywood is noticing. Gen Z (the largest demographic for all three films) is flocking to the theater to see creators they already know try new media based on original IP. Filmmaker Mark Duplass (who has a role in Backrooms) said these wins are a "glimmer of hope" in a fractured distribution landscape. 

“We’ve got examples of creators woodshedding things, putting them online, building an audience, and now the people with the purse strings are going to notice,” Duplass said on Instagram.

YouTube recently shared that it has 15 different ways for creators to monetize. At Press Publish LA last week, YouTube VP of Partnerships for the Americas Tim Katz joined Colin and Samir onstage to talk through what the new options mean for creators—and what brands expect as a result.

Katz's POV: Brands want two things—return on ad spend and brand relevancy. 

“Your viewers know when something isn't authentic to who you are,” Katz said. “The needle to thread for creators is, ‘How do you bring your audience in and bring that relevancy to the brand, but at the same time do it in a way that's actually authentic?’”

Why brands want higher collaboration: As audiences spend more time watching YouTube on TV, and YouTubers are making more content that feels like TV shows. Brands, according to Katz, want to feel integrated into the narrative of the show instead of a “30-second pre-roll.” 

This can happen in two ways: 

Supporting these projects: Katz shared that YouTube is improving TV playlist features so creators can lay out their channels into episodes, seasons, and series—mimicking traditional streaming services like Netflix.

“We're trying to make sure that the user experiences are matching the creator ambitions and the advertiser ambitions, and that it all syncs up together,” Katz said.

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Jon Favreau has directed some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters. He also happens to be a huge foodie.

So when offered the opportunity to sit down with him during his worldwide press tour for The Mandalorian and Grogu, the guys at JOLLY didn’t think twice.

The result? A lighthearted video shot in one of London’s fanciest fish and chip spots with nearly 1-million views.

A booking like that doesn’t happen by accident. The team over at Central Talent Booking made the introduction.

They’ve spent over 25 years helping creators like JOLLY land guests that move the needle. If you’re looking to book your next big get, partner with CTB today.

Common creator wisdom typically includes diversifying revenue streams to products and services. Veteran beauty creator Michelle Phan is urging creators to think twice.

Last week, Phan was a guest on Creator Support Live with Adobe during Press Publish LA. Challenge creator Lada Popova, aka Lady Pop, took the opportunity to ask: Should she launch her own product as another revenue stream or stick to brand deals?

Phan, who was one of the first creators to start her own product line with EM Cosmetics, shared her two cents →

Test audience’s willingness to buy. “Start with brand sponsorships first and see what brands your audience is going to resonate with, and what brands they start buying and supporting,” Phan said. 

Go small. Phan recommends starting with digital products with low distribution overhead, like downloads or paywalled content.

Big picture: Many creators look to offer products and services to reduce their dependency on brand deals, but Phan, along with Colin and Samir, warn that it may not be worth the effort.

“Focus on making good videos. Being a great video creator is exceptionally hard. Being a product founder is also exceptionally hard. If you’re one person you gotta pick one,” Samir said. “As you grow, you can expand into both, but it’s two full-time businesses.”