Minecraft YouTuber ‘Dream’ is hitting back at accusations of “catfishing” his fanbase after a purported photo of the star began circulating around social media.
The past few days have been a whirlwind of controversy for Dream. After appearing in an interview with fellow influencer Anthony Padilla, Dream came under fire for admitting to throwing out his ADHD medication, claiming he felt “way less creative” while medicated.
Shortly thereafter, a massive Twitter thread containing purported racist behavior from Dream took off online, with an alleged DM from the Minecrafter responding to accusations of racism in his fanbase appearing to kickstart the backlash.
The YouTube star, who boasts over 23 million subscribers and a sprawling fanbase, has now been accused of “catfishing” his viewers after a purported photo of him surfaced amid the Twitter drama.
Fans claimed that the person in the photos is actually Dream, himself, as the individual responsible for getting a hold of the picture allegedly discovered the pic through his family’s personal Facebook profiles.
However, it’s not just the photo itself that’s causing controversy — it’s the fact that the purported picture of him isn’t exactly what fans had in mind when imagining what the faceless YouTuber would really look like.
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This kicked off a tsunami of backlash against Dream, with many critics and fans accusing the YouTuber of using his brother as a possible “body double” for his Instagram photos.
It doesn’t look like Dream is getting too riled up about the drama, though, as he posted a cheeky Tweet reacting to the scandal the next day.
“Decided to face reveal… please be nice,” the YouTuber wrote, attached to a computer-generated image of a blonde Caucasian man with blue eyes.
decided to face reveal… please be nice :/ pic.twitter.com/TRbpHVWzLJ
— Dream (@Dream) June 10, 2021
It appears that much of Dream’s fanbase is divided regarding the purported “catfishing,” with some turning their anger toward Dream, while others worry over his mental health after his family was essentially doxxed by overzealous netizens trying to discover his true identity.
Either way, the pressure to match a certain image fantasized by fans must be overwhelming, and Dream isn’t alone in hiding his face from the world; fellow faceless YouTuber Corpse Husband has also cited anxiety and apprehension as a reason for keeping his face off the net after amassing a huge fanbase.