The Explosive Drama: Inside the FaZe Rain and Grace Van Dien Controversy
FaZe Rain and Grace Van Dien's feud has caused quite a stir on Twitch Van Dien's threat to leave FaZe has left fans wondering what led to this controversy
FaZe Clan, a prominent esports organization, has been facing financial difficulties recently, and Twitch streamer and FaZe owner Nordan "Rain" Shat has been vocal about the issues within the company. Rain has accused FaZe's corporate management of exploiting and underpaying members who have been with the organization since its inception, and has been exposing FaZe's controversies on social media for months. The most recent drama involves the signing of Stranger Things actress and Twitch streamer Grace Van Dien, also known as bluefille, which has been met with mixed reactions due to Rain's previous claims that FaZe would sign celebrities without a gaming background and pay them more than existing members. The tension between Van Dien and Rain has continued to escalate in the following days.
The FaZe Rain and Grace Van Dien Controversy
On May 18th, Rain leaked information that FaZe had signed Van Dien as its latest content creator, claiming that her only qualification was playing Chrissy Cunningham on Stranger Things. Additionally, he derided her for not being familiar with FaZe's signature "trickshot" move in Modern Warfare 2. Despite the criticism, FaZe officially announced Van Dien's signing over a week later. In her announcement video, Van Dien expressed her desire to be a positive role model for women in the male-dominated gaming industry and cited FaZe's commitment to diversity and representation as reasons for joining the company. However, the negative comments directed towards FaZe and Van Dien overshadowed the announcement.
Van Dien and Rain's disputes spilled over to Twitch and Twitter, with Van Dien later addressing the issue in a YouTube video. In the video, she expressed surprise about the animosity shown towards her by FaZe owners and played a recording of Rain insulting her during a stream. Rain ridiculed her appearance and declared that he wouldn't touch her "even on my drunkest nights." Van Dien condemned this type of misogyny in the gaming community, particularly within FaZe, which has been criticized for its macho culture in the past. She also claimed that she faced backlash for joining FaZe simply because she is a woman, while there was no such reaction when Snoop Dogg joined the team the previous year.
Grace Van Dien Threatens to Leave FaZe
Following several days of online exchanges, the pair of Twitch streamers finally met on May 30 in an attempt to resolve their differences. Rain recorded their conversation and uploaded it to his YouTube channel, along with his commentary, as a means to counter Van Dien's criticisms. As part of his response, he addressed a tweet from 2013 where he made a comment about wanting to sexually assault Emma Watson.
During the discussion, Rain and Van Dien's exchange became heated and emotional, causing the actress to walk out and threaten to leave FaZe if the video was published. In response, FaZe released a statement on Twitter showing support for Van Dien. However, it appears that she has since removed "FaZe" from her bio and made her Twitter account private, leading some to speculate that she may have terminated her contract with the company. Additionally, fans noticed that she responded with "Is this a joke?" to a tweet from FaZe member Nate Hill asking who wanted to join the organization.
FaZe has a history of controversy, including involvement in a cryptocurrency scam and the use of racial slurs by its members. Currently, internal issues within the organization may be impacting both new and longstanding members.
