YouTuber brought 50 customers into a Subway one minute before closing for content. Then offered $500 like minimum wage workers owe him gratitude

A popular YouTube channel known for pranks and social experiments sent 50 people into a Subway sandwich shop just one minute before it was set to close. The video, titled I Stress Tested Employees In Public, was uploaded by the group 4fun, whose members include Jonny Curren, Sean Cregier, and Sam Curren. 

The channel has been making prank and challenge content since 2012 and has built a following of over 2.2 million on TikTok alone. The idea behind the video was to test whether well-known companies would stick to their own policies when pushed to the limit. 4fun picked four businesses for the experiment: Subway, Costco, a moving company, and DoorDash. The Subway segment, which has drawn the most attention online, came first.

With just one minute left before closing, one of the creators walked in and asked if the store was still open. After getting the green light, he brought in the full group. The workers ended up staying on for nearly an extra hour to fill an order of 30 turkey sandwiches, 20 ham sandwiches, and 10 Philly cheesesteaks. The total bill came to nearly $500. At the end, one of the creators handed over a $500 tip to the two employees on shift. “You guys deserve it,” he said. “Thank you so much, you guys are great, we love you.”

Not everyone was happy, tip or not

The reaction online was split. When clips from the video spread to other platforms, many viewers pushed back against what they saw as an unfair situation for the workers. “This is such a dick thing to do! It’s not the CEOs you are screwing over, it’s the workers,” one person wrote. Others softened their view once they found out about the tip. 

“At first I was like yeah these guys f**king suck, then I saw they gave the 2 employees $500 for maybe an hour or 2 of overtime,” another comment read. This kind of divided reaction is not uncommon in the YouTube space, as seen when MrBeast faced backlash over a charity stream controversy that also split viewers down the middle.

The rest of the video followed a similar format. The group bought an expensive TV from Costco, then spent time destroying it by dropping it, submerging it in water, and setting it on fire with a firework before taking it back to the store. Costco was prepared to accept the return under its well-known 100% satisfaction policy, but the creators decided not to go through with it. As noted in the video, two of the members are already banned from Costco and are involved in a court case with the company.

In another segment, a moving company was asked to transport three coffins, two of which had people lying inside them. The movers refused to move the coffins with bodies in them, citing legal reasons, but said they were willing to move the empty ones. 

The final test involved DoorDash drivers being asked to deliver food to a fake cult setup inside a yurt in a remote location. Two out of three drivers completed the delivery and walked into the tent without turning back. Each driver was given a $100 tip.

The video is also sponsored by Whatnot, a live-stream selling app, which offered new users $15 in free credit and ran a giveaway that included a Nintendo Switch 2 and AirPods. YouTube has continued to be a big business for both creators and the platform itself, as shown by how YouTube settled with Donald Trump for $24.5 million over his insurrection-related ban.

4fun is no stranger to this type of content. Past videos on the channel have included trying to sneak into a Taylor Swift concert and testing the limits of other public-facing businesses. The Subway segment, in particular, shows how this style of content continues to divide viewers, where the same stunt can be seen as harmless fun or as putting hourly workers in an uncomfortable spot just for views.