If you’ve been on the internet at any point this fortnight, you might’ve seen the growing drama surrounding SSSniperWolf and JacksFilms’ feud, which just seems to get wilder with each new update. The two prominent YouTubers have been beefing for some time now, but with doxxing accusations and calls for demonetization in the mix, things have certainly intensified. So, what in the hell happened?
SSSniperWolf, real name Alia Shelesh, is a YouTuber with over 34 million subscribers and is known for her reaction videos, in which she views other creators’ videos taken from YouTube and TikTok and reacts to them. JacksFilms (John Patrick “Jack” Douglass) is another well-known YouTuber with almost 5 million subscribers. Douglass has previously been very outspoken about SSSniperWolf’s content, accusing her of profiting off the hard work of other creators.
This debate is one that’s come up a number of times this year in regards to streamers like xQc and HasanAbi, and has a lot of online creators divided as to what constitutes content theft and what’s fair game, particularly for monetised reaction videos.
JacksFilms went as far as to create a secondary YouTube account in 2022 parodying SSSniperWolf’s content, with 40 videos reacting to and discussing Shelesh’s content since the end of July. His main account also features a number of videos discussing the two’s feud in detail.
Things heat up between SSSniperWolf and JacksFilms
At the end of June, things began to heat up when JacksFilms commented on SSSniperWolf’s reaction content on X (formerly Twitter), swiftly receiving a response from Shelesh a few days later. “I’m going to have to start charging u 20% since you get your ideas from me,” her June 28 tweet read, “90% of what I upload are my ideas, people copy me and then people like you get confused.” She posted this alongside a screenshot showing her react to random acts of kindness two years prior, and a MrBeast video with an almost identical thumbnail and title one year later.
JacksFilms hit back at Shelesh, drawing a response from her in which she claimed that he couldn’t stand that “a female YouTuber is getting more views than me,” even though he “make[s] the same content.”
The doxxing incident
Despite ongoing beef ever since in the form of Jack’s parody videos, things came to a head on October 14, when SSSniperWolf posted a poll to her Instagram story which asked her followers whether or not she should show up at JacksFilms house as she was nearby for a shoot. She ultimately did rock up to his home, and posted a photo of the YouTuber’s house captioned, “let’s talk like adults.” The story was quickly taken down after posting, but users screenshotted the post and began to share it online.
JacksFilms responded to SSSniperWolf via X in a tweet that reads, “You showed up to our home tonight and filmed it for your 5M+ IG followers to see. That’s called doxxing…There is no reality where you’re in the right here.” Jack’s tweet came after Shelesh posted to her Instagram story claiming that the YouTuber had been “harassing me for months,” and that she had no “ill intentions” towards him. “It’s so sad when people have to constantly create drama to pay their bills,” she said.
SSSniperWolf hit back further after receiving backlash for posting his house, writing in an Instagram story that Jack’s 40 videos in recent months relating to her was “obsessive behaviour,” ending the story by asking if she should get a restraining order. Jack shared the story to X, saying, “Well, one of us showed up to the other’s house tonight…and it wasn’t me…hmmm.”
The same day as the incident, JacksFilms posted again to X demanding that YouTube demonetise SSSniperWolf or remove her from the platform entirely for being “creepy, gross, violating” and for being “dangerous.”
YouTube responds (eventually)
YouTube was notably silent on the issue, with JacksFilms posting again on 18 October to claim that the situation held “dangerous implications if it goes unchecked.” Things seemed quiet on the YouTube front until 19 October, when rather than directly taking action, they tweeted what seemed to be a direct reference to the feud, saying, “would it be too meta to do a reaction video to a reaction video.”
After coming under fire from fans and creators alike, YouTube took to X two days later, on 21 October, to confirm that SSSniperWolf had received a “temporary monetisation suspension” for her actions. “Off platform actions that put others’ personal safety at risk harm our community & the behavior on both sides isn’t what we want on YT,” they said. “Hoping everyone helps move this convo to a better place.”
Shortly after the temporary demonetisation, SSSniperWolf issued an apology, calling her actions “inexcusable” and apologising to JacksFilms, Youtube, creators, and her fans “for not being a better example for appropriate conflict resolution.” She offered to reach out to Jack directly to “find some time to connect and communicate, respectfully,” off-camera and privately as “a meaningful example of how conflict should be solved.” Shelesh also thanked YouTube for holding her accountable. “I deserve it, respect the decision and appreciate the opportunity to learn and grow from a true lapse in judgement,” she said.
JacksFilms has yet to respond to SSSniperWolf’s apology publicly, but in the meantime other X users have responded to Shelesh’s post, with one user calling it a “ChatGPT apology,” and another questioning how authentic the apology could really be: “It was all jokes for a while, now YouTube takes your money away and now you’re sorry.”
The initial issue of content stealing is likely to rage on as reaction content continues to go gangbusters on all platforms with video, but there’s likely a larger discussion to be had about content creator beef which always seem to go the extra mile as YouTubers, streamers and other online personalities do the most in tense situations like this. Doxxing is a pretty hectic way to try and settle (or inflame) any argument, particularly for two content creators with millions-large followings, and begs the question of how viewers and the internet at large reward rage-bait and wild actions, even if they’re negative ones.
It’s anyone’s guess whether we’ll hear more from the latest YouTube beef as time goes on and both creators try to move forward, but given their highly public feud, I’d be counting on further updates in time. We’ll update this piece should the story develop further.
Lead Image Credit: SSSniperwolf / JacksFilms
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