Inoxtag Everest Documentary Receives Over 11 Million Views in 24 Hours

Real name Inès Benazzouz, Inoxtag has more than 8 million subscribers on YouTube, 6.1 million on TikTok and 5.6 million on Instagram.

More than 11 million views in 24 hours: “The counters are going crazynt” for the documentary by web star Inoxtag which traces his ascent of Everest, testifying to a craze “exceptional”, a YouTube spokesperson told AFP on Sunday. Posted online Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on the platform owned by Google, where it is number one in trends, this film of nearly 2 hours and 30 minutes, entitled Kaizen, has already generated more than 95,000 comments, often rave reviews, and collected more than a million “I like”.

“Very exceptional figures which show the enthusiasm for this documentary”according to the YouTube spokesperson contacted by AFP. This is “Certainly” one of the best launches in history of the platform in France, added the same source, in the absence of a precise classification.

The 22-year-old YouTuber, followed by more than 20 million subscribers on social networks, also did well in theaters, attracting 340,000 spectators – including 40,000 abroad (Belgium, Quebec, Morocco) – to the previews of his film on Friday evening and Saturday morning, according to figures given to AFP on Sunday by its distributor, MK2.

For content posted online for free a few hours later, “This is unprecedented“, commented Nathanaël Karmitz, one of the leaders of MK2, to AFP, praising “the desire for collective experience” of the public and a film that “deserves to be seen on the big screen.”

This documentary also adapts “very good for viewing on television” with family, argues the YouTube spokesperson.

Kaizen traces the challenge of this mountaineering novice to climb Everest, the highest peak in the world (over 8,800 meters), by preparing for it in one year. In a farewell video to his fans in early April, Inoxtag said he would disconnect from all his networks while he completed his climb. Many media outlets had speculated on the success of his challenge.

His film, which also shows the damage caused by overtourism, pollution, and the risks associated with this expedition, was acclaimed by his fans, but also sparked some criticism in the press and on social media. Libération notably deplored the invisibility of the Sherpas’ work, while mountaineer and photographer Pascal Tournaire pointed out in L’Equipe a film “very self-centered” without real “feat”according to him.