Meet the 3 Singaporeans vying to compete on US reality gameshow Beast Games
BNB Diviyadhaarshini
The Straits Times
April 27, 2026
A pro boxer, a luxury content creator and a comedy influencer may have little in common, but they are the three Singaporeans shortlisted to participate in the Beast Games, an American reality gameshow.
Over the weekend, Mr Calros Ong, Ms Nicole Chen and Ms Willabelle Ong put out calls on their social media platforms seeking votes in hopes of becoming the first Singaporean to participate in the gameshow, a brainchild of internet sensation MrBeast. The person with the most votes when voting ends on May 1 will go on to compete in the United States.
Amazon Prime Video’s Beast Games sees participants undertake mental, physical and social challenges in hopes of winning US$5 million (S$6.3 million). Season 2, which premiered on Jan 7 and ended on Feb 25, saw an initial 200 contestants. Season 1 featured about 1,000 contestants.
In a TikTok post on April 26, Mr Ong, 21, said he dropped out of school at age 16 and put his all into a boxing career.
He was set to compete in his fifth pro fight in Bangkok on April 25 but pulled out as it had clashed with one of the selection stages for the Beast Games.
“Choosing to forfeit that fight was a big sacrifice, but this opportunity to represent Singapore on such a big international platform was too important to miss,” the undefeated fighter told The Straits Times on April 27.
Mr Ong, who has about 9,000 followers on TikTok, said he was unfazed about being scrutinised by a global audience.
“It is a rare chance to compete on a global scale, push my limits in new ways, and represent my country in front of a huge audience,” he said.
“While the two other shortlisted contestants are mainly influencers, I’ve been training hard right here in Singapore specifically for Beast Games, even while waiting for updates.”
In a post on TikTok, Ms Ong, 31, said that since being informed in January that she was in the running for a slot on the show, she has spent time on Zoom interviews and background checks with the show’s production team.
“Seasons one and two were quite physically demanding, and that gave me pause. I’m not someone who comes from an athletic background, so I had to really sit with the decision,” she told ST, adding that she would have regretted turning down the offer.
In a TikTok video asking her 701,600 followers to vote for her, Ms Ong, who produces vlogs on travelling and luxury fashion, said: “I would love to have this incredible opportunity to represent Singapore and be my most authentic self.”
TikTok jokester Ms Chen told ST that she was in Tokyo Disneyland when she received an e-mail from the Beast Games production team, adding that she was speechless and even wondered if it was a scam.
The 28-year-old, who goes by the online moniker Nicole Liel, said that she leapt at the chance to take part in the Games after being involved in a traffic accident as a pedestrian in 2019. “I kind of made a promise to myself that if life throws opportunities at me, I’m just going to take it.”
“If you remove the influencer part, I’m literally just a very standard Singaporean,” she said. “Go through school, go to work, BTO, get married, complain about the weather, complain about how everything is getting more expensive… like I am your neighbour.
“Sometimes you just need to say yes and see where life brings you. I’m basically living proof that ‘anyhow try also can’.”
The Squid Game-esque show divides the participant pool into groups, where they compete in high-intensity challenges.
During season 2, the competition took place in Beast City – located in Ontario, Canada – which can accommodate 500 people, including contestants. It has roundabouts and mini chalets, and cost a reported S$17.8 million to build. Fifty people will initially share a chalet, sleeping in bunk beds, with the number of participants whittled down each week.
The challenges include “social voting” to eliminate participants, dead-hanging for more time and scavenger hunts on a massive scale. Participants are eliminated after every challenge until the final, which is a contest between two individuals.
The previous editions of the show saw it claim several records, including the largest single pot of prize money in television history (US$5 million), the largest island to be given away in a show (La Vivienda Island in Panama in Season 1) and the most people simultaneously dropped through trap doors (38).
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