Disney just rehired the two YouTubers it fired nearly a decade ago. On September 10, Hulu and ESPN co-greenlit an untitled fight competition series produced by Jake and Logan Paul, with Jake serving as executive producer through his own promotion company. It is the first project ever jointly ordered by the two Disney-owned platforms. Disney is paying for a 108M-viewer audience it cannot reach any other way.
⚡ Key Takeaways
- Hulu and ESPN co-greenlit an untitled Paul Brothers fight competition series on September 10, 2026, per Deadline's exclusive.
- It's the first project ever jointly ordered by the two Disney-owned platforms, with production starting in 2027 under the working brand "Fight Game."
- Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson averaged 108M live global viewers on Netflix in November 2024, the most-streamed sporting event in history.
- Wheelhouse and Jake's Most Valuable Promotions are producing, with both Pauls attached as executive producers, not just talent.
- Nine years earlier, Disney Channel fired Jake Paul from Bizaardvark and Logan Paul's 2018 Aokigahara vlog ended his Disney-adjacent deals.
- Disney did not buy a redemption arc. It bought back into a young-male audience it could not reach any other way, on the Pauls' terms.
What actually happened?
According to Deadline, Hulu and ESPN co-greenlit the untitled series on September 10, 2026. It is produced by Brent Montgomery's Wheelhouse (Netflix's Million Dollar Secret, A&E's Duck Dynasty reboot) and Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions. Deadline reports the show previously carried the working title Fight Island and is aimed squarely at young male audiences the network cannot reach through traditional sports programming. Casting is open now under the working brand "Fight Game."
The format drops fighters into two rival camps coached by Jake and Logan, has them live and train together in the wild, and settles eliminations by fights instead of votes. Disciplines include MMA, boxing, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, and karate. Production begins in 2027, per Most Valuable Promotions. Jake announced the greenlight himself on X, and Disney did not push back on his framing.
"I got rehired by Disney. Hulu, ESPN. Me and Logan. Greenlit, greenlit."
Jake Paul, MVP co-founder and executive producer of the series
Why does this matter for creators?
Because it is the receipt from a decade-long power flip. In 2017 Disney Channel fired Jake Paul from Bizaardvark after neighborhood complaints and off-brand behavior. In 2018 Logan Paul's Aokigahara "suicide forest" vlog ended his Disney-adjacent partnerships and got him yanked from YouTube's premium ad program. Nine years later the same corporate parent is greenlighting them together, on cable and on streaming, on their own terms.
That is not a redemption arc. It is a repricing of who has the leverage. The Pauls did not come back as talent for hire. They came back with their own production company (MVP), their own studio partner (Wheelhouse), and executive-producer credits on the series.
Disney is paying for distribution rights to an audience the Pauls own. It is not renting them for a season. That distinction is the whole story for anyone with a following larger than the show they might otherwise get cast in.
Where does this go from here?
The number that broke the dam is 108M. Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson averaged 108 million live global viewers on Netflix in November 2024, per Variety, making it the most-streamed sporting event in history. It peaked at 65M concurrent streams (38 million in the US alone) and drew 60 million households worldwide, per The Hollywood Reporter. That single night rewrote what a distributor will pay a creator to headline live sports.
Netflix followed up with Paul vs. Anthony Joshua in December 2025 on a reported $184M combined purse. Now Disney is packaging that same draw as recurring unscripted IP, on a cable network and a general-entertainment streamer at the same time. The Pauls' combined main-channel YouTube base sits at roughly 49M subscribers. Every distributor with a young-male hole in its lineup is bidding for the same kind of talent now.
"Wheelhouse was created for moments like this, bringing a high concept to life with massive stars who create bold new content, unmistakably their own, that connects authentically with their fans."
Brent Montgomery, CEO, Wheelhouse
What does Fanvault think?
The takeaway is not "become Jake Paul." It is structural. The Pauls got the Disney deal because they owned the promotion vehicle (MVP), the audience, and the rights before they walked into the room. That is the same thesis Fanvault is built on.
Creators should own the storefront, keep 92% of the revenue on an 8% platform fee (versus 15% on Fanvue, 10% plus $0.30 on Passes, and roughly 20% on Fanfix), and stack subscriptions, paywalled posts, auctions, and authenticated memorabilia in one account. Disney rehired the Pauls because they built the leverage first. The lesson is the leverage, not the punch line.
The kid Disney fired for being a liability just sold Disney the audience it could not buy any other way. Every executive at every network is going to remember that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Disney fire Jake Paul in 2017?
Disney Channel dropped Jake Paul from Bizaardvark in July 2017 after months of complaints from neighbors near his Beverly Grove home about noisy pranks, drone flights, and public disturbances, per The Hollywood Reporter. Logan Paul's own Disney-adjacent partnerships collapsed the following January after his Aokigahara "suicide forest" vlog triggered advertiser flight and YouTube monetization penalties. Both brothers spent the next several years rebuilding audiences outside the Disney ecosystem entirely.
Who is producing the new fight competition series?
Brent Montgomery's Wheelhouse is producing alongside Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions, per the official MVP announcement. Wheelhouse's recent credits include Netflix's Million Dollar Secret and A&E's Duck Dynasty reboot, so the studio brings unscripted-competition muscle to the package. Both Pauls are attached as executive producers, not just on-camera coaches.
When does the show premiere?
Production begins in
How big is the audience Disney is actually buying?
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson averaged
What does this mean for creators without a promotion company like MVP?
The pattern is the point. The Pauls got the Disney deal because they walked in owning the promotion vehicle, the audience, and the IP. Any creator who wants distribution leverage should be building the equivalent stack now, whether that is a podcast network, a physical-product line, a live-event brand, or a storefront on a low-fee platform. The negotiation is only as strong as the assets the creator brings into the room.