The YouTuber Who Paid His Own Way Into Hollywood

"At the box office earlier this month, four out of the five top-grossing movies were not from big companies. There was Solo Mio, an inspirational romantic drama starring Kevin James from the faith-based distributor Angel Studios; a filmed concert from the K-pop group Stray Kids; and a French adaptation of Dracula from the director Luc Besson that had already made big money overseas."

"The writer-director of Iron Lung is Mark Fischbach, better known as Markiplier- one of the most popular content creators on YouTube, if not the internet. He's a veteran of the video format known as "Let's Play," in which on-screen personalities offer cheeky commentary while running through a video game. The bulk of Fischbach's work thus mostly features little else but game footage and his cheerful face reacting to whatever he's playing-usually something of the indie-horror variety."

"Fischbach has spent nearly 15 years building his audience, establishing himself as a funny, pleasant, and charitable guy on a platform often lacking for them. But even with those accomplishments, what he's achieved with Iron Lung is the kind of creative success story most independent artists can only dream of. Fischbach has long explored other such efforts alongside his usual fare; he has launched a clothing line, hosted podcasts, and made interactive, choose-your-own-adventure-style series, also published on YouTube."

At the box office earlier this month, four of the five top-grossing movies were not from major studios. Releases included Solo Mio, a faith-based inspirational romantic drama starring Kevin James; a filmed concert from K-pop group Stray Kids; and a French adaptation of Dracula by Luc Besson that had already performed well overseas. Iron Lung, a strange sci‑fi tale about a man exploring a mysterious underwater world, has grossed more than $30 million domestically against a $3 million budget. Iron Lung was funded, made, and released by Mark Fischbach, known as Markiplier, a YouTuber with over 38 million subscribers who spent nearly 15 years building his audience and expanded into clothing, podcasts, and interactive series.

Read at The Atlantic