From Try Guys to H3: Two Creator Company Scandals, Four Years Apart, Compared

In 2022 three Try Guys removed a partner through a signed company consent. In October 2026 the H3 crew refused to keep working with Ethan Klein, who then pledged to drop his stakes. The contrast shows founders what governance buys in a crisis.

Four years apart, two of YouTube’s best-known creator companies hit the same wall: a personal crisis involving one of the people whose face is the product. In September 2022 the Try Guys announced that co-founder Ned Fulmer was out. On Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, Hila Klein publicly alleged that her husband and H3 Podcast co-host, Ethan Klein, had been having an affair, and the show’s crew said it would not continue with him. Set side by side, the two cases make a practical creator company scandal playbook, mostly because of how differently each one unfolded.

Where it stands: On Oct. 23, 2026, H3 was still off the air; Ethan Klein had announced an indefinite hiatus the day before. He has since promised to shed his ownership and financial stakes; the crew has named no successor show and no end date.

Two cautions before the comparison. The H3 account is Hila Klein’s allegation; Ethan Klein’s public posts do not characterize the relationship at all. And the facts here are only those reported by the outlets cited below.

The two cases at a glance

Try Guys, 2022 H3 Podcast, 2026
Company 2nd Try LLC Not specified in coverage
Who acted Three co-owners Production crew, then the founder
Mechanism Signed consent of LLC members Public refusal to work with him
Review first? Yes, an HR professional None reported
Outside investor BuzzFeed held a stake None reported
Equity outcome Never disclosed Pledge only, no terms

How the Try Guys used their paperwork

The Try Guys had a formal structure to work with. The Hollywood Reporter reported in 2018 that the four had left BuzzFeed and started their own production company, 2nd Try LLC. BuzzFeed News later disclosed in its 2022 coverage that “BuzzFeed Inc. has a financial stake in 2nd Try LLC,” so the company also had an outside investor.

According to the remaining members’ account, quoted by NPR, they moved in steps. First: “We immediately removed Ned from work activities and engaged an HR professional to conduct a thorough review of the facts.” Then Keith Habersberger described the decision itself: on Friday, Sept. 16, the three signed “written consent of the members of Second Try LLC,” removing Fulmer as a manager and ending his job at the company.

That detail matters for founders. The decision was a written act of the company’s members, the three who remained, rather than a press release or a handshake. The public announcement, “As a result of a thorough internal review, we do not see a path forward together,” came eleven days after the signing. Fulmer’s own statement said he “had a consensual workplace relationship.”

One thing the record does not show is what happened to his equity. No cited source says he was bought out or lost his ownership, and this article does not assume either.

Why the Try Guys took their time

The pace was deliberate. Zach Kornfeld told the group’s podcast, as reported by Entertainment Tonight: “We didn’t want to leave ourselves open to lawsuits if we were ‘unjustly removing him,’ or what have you.” He added: “There’s a right way and a rushed way, and we wanted to make sure we were doing it the right way.”

Habersberger gave a second reason, per NPR: “We chose not to rush into the announcement for a few reasons.” He pointed to the real people affected. Meanwhile, Tubefilter reported, viewers noticed that Fulmer appeared to have been edited out of some recent videos before anything was announced.

How H3 moved instead

The H3 sequence played out in public, inside roughly a day. Ethan Klein had put the show on an indefinite hiatus on Oct. 22. Hila Klein’s statement followed late that night, U.S. time, per The Hollywood Reporter. Then the crew posted that “we would not continue working with Ethan involved or profiting in any way.” Variety reported that the decision was unanimous.

The actors were different, too. No public vote of owners has been reported. The crew’s ownership position, if any, has not been disclosed. Its leverage was practical: the people who make the show said they would stop making it with him. Our earlier piece on what happens when the team walks away from a founder looks at that dynamic in detail.

The founder then made the ownership move himself. His Friday post, Oct. 23, said he was “working with Hila to urgently remove my ownership and financial stakes in any podcasts, [Hila’s businesses] Teddy Fresh, Teddy Glow or any joint venture that I would profit from.” In a separate Story quoted by Variety, he asked people to respect his family’s privacy. Neither post set out terms, a timetable or a structure. Our explainer on the mechanics of giving up founder equity covers the usual options.

Lessons from a creator company scandal, side by side

Lesson What the cases show
Governance gives you a lever Try Guys could act by member consent
Fact-finding protects the company Try Guys used an HR review first
Labor is leverage too H3’s crew stopped the show by refusing
Ownership still needs paperwork Neither case has public equity terms
Speak only to what you know H3 crew: future not yet known

Write the exit rules before you need them. A removal clause, a buy-sell provision and a valuation method are cheap to agree on early and very hard to negotiate in the middle of a public crisis. Our guide on how to fire your co-founder covers the formal routes.

Separate the person from the job. The Try Guys removed Fulmer from work activities while the review ran. That pause is available only when roles and authority are written down.

Plan for the spouse problem. At H3, the person making the allegation is also a co-host and a business partner, which means a personal breakdown and a business one arrive together. Fulmer’s wife appeared in Try Guys videos, but no source cited here describes her as an owner of the company.

Expect the commercial cost. The Try Guys later put a number on the damage. In a May 24, 2024 conversation with Anthony Padilla, Habersberger and Kornfeld said, as reported by Sportskeeda: “We lost millions in brand deals. It sent our company into a tailspin.” No sponsor reactions to the H3 hiatus had been reported as of Oct. 23, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Was Ned Fulmer bought out of the Try Guys company?

No public source says so. By the remaining three members’ account, they removed him through a signed members’ consent, which took away his manager role and ended his job at the company. What happened to any equity he held has not been reported.

How is the H3 situation different from the Try Guys case?

The Try Guys acted as co-owners, through a signed written consent of the company’s members, after an internal review. At H3, the production crew publicly refused to keep working with Ethan Klein, and he then said he would give up his ownership and financial stakes. Whether the crew holds any ownership has not been disclosed.

Did the Try Guys lose money after the scandal?

Two members said in a May 2024 interview with Anthony Padilla that the fallout cost them millions in brand deals, according to Sportskeeda’s account of the interview.

What should a creator company have in place before a scandal?

Common starting points are an operating or shareholder agreement that covers removal and exit terms, a process for independent fact-finding, a written record of which entity holds the brand and each channel, and a plan for who speaks publicly. A lawyer should draft anything binding.

Sources

This article is general business information for founders, not legal, tax or financial advice. Details of the H3 Podcast situation are as reported by the sources cited on the dates shown and can change; the affair account comes from Hila Klein’s public statement. For a co-founder or ownership dispute of your own, talk to a lawyer.