Coinciding with his 31st birthday on Friday, Shane Dawson dropped a video on his long-dormant YouTube channel — his first video in roughly five months. And as is wont for the YouTube vet , Dawson caused a massive stir with a previously-unannounced documentary about fellow creator Eugenia Cooney, who also returned to YouTube after a five-month hiatus while seeking treatment for an eating disorder.
Dawson had previously announced that a second documentary with Jeffree Star was in the works — as is more content centered around conspiracy theories. That said, the surprise Cooney doc — which is just over an hour long, and which Dawson began teasing on Twitter earlier this month — clocked massive numbers for both Dawson and his latest subject. (Cooney had not previously discussed her struggles with anorexia, despite comments and concerns from fans. She says she decided to put her story in Dawson’s capable hands to help other people who might be struggling).
The emotionally-charged video has clearly resonated with viewers, with 21 million views in three days. It remained at the top of the ‘Trending’ tab over the weekend, and is currently sitting at No. 3.
Cooney also stood to gain from the exposé. After announcing her hiatus in February, she has since posted two videos on her channel beginning, including I’m Back (5.7 million views) and a Dawson collab titled What I Missed While I Was In Rehab (1.6 million views). She has also gained 304,000 subscribers since the day the Dawson doc dropped on Friday, according to SocialBlade. Cooney, who is active on Twitch as well, more than doubled her following on that platform, growing from 13,300 followers on July 19 to 29,300 today — an increase of roughly 16,000 viewers.
Dawson has previously covered mental illness (in a documentary with Jake Paul that sought to examine whether the vlogger was sociopathic) and has also lent a helping hand to other beleaguered creators — though to a less dire extent — including Bunny ‘ Graveyard Girl’ Meyer and Tana Mongeau.
You can check out The Return Of Eugenia Cooney below:
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