French streamer dies after several days of live abuse on Kick
French streamer Jean Pormanove died during an extreme challenge on Kick, after days of live-streamed abuse
The streaming world is once again in mourning. Frenchman Jean Pormanove, whose real name was Raphaël Graven, lost his life during an extreme challenge broadcast on the Kick platform. The marathon broadcast, which lasted nearly 12 uninterrupted days, ended in tragedy in the early hours of August 17-18, when the young man stopped breathing while sleeping in the middle of the stream.
Far from being a simple endurance challenge, the broadcast was marked by episodes of violence and humiliation. Graven was subjected to physical and psychological abuse in exchange for donations: strangulation, attempted drowning, electric shocks, beatings, sleep deprivation, and even being shot at point-blank range with paintball guns. All of this occurred in front of thousands of spectators who paid to see his endurance tested.
Four people participated in this digital circus: the victim, another young man with a disability, and two men who carried out the abuse. According to defense lawyers, the scenes were "scripted" or consensual, although the fatal outcome belies this alleged "fiction." The attackers turned off the camera when they noticed Graven wasn't reacting. By then, nearly €36,500 in donations had already been raised.
The Nice Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation after the death was confirmed by an autopsy. The French Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Technologies, Clara Chappaz, called the case an “absolute horror” and called for stronger content moderation on emerging platforms like Kick, which have gained notoriety for allowing extreme streaming with few controls.
Kick was launched in December 2022 as an alternative to Twitch, promising more “creative freedom” and a 95% revenue share for streamers, compared to 50% for its competitor. However, this freedom has made the platform synonymous with excesses: live betting, provocative broadcasts, and disturbing content that is rarely sanctioned.
Behind Kick is 30-year-old Australian entrepreneur Ed Craven, considered the richest young man in his country with a fortune of €3.8 billion. Together with his partner Bijan Tehrani, he founded Stake, an online cryptocurrency casino that generated more than €4 billion in gross revenue in 2024. Kick is, in practice, an extension to promote this business in territories where Twitch and other platforms restrict gambling content.
Craven, a self-taught and precocious entrepreneur, built his empire on the exploitation of gambling and the morbidity of digital entertainment. His company has secured multimillion-dollar contracts with celebrities such as rapper Drake, Stake's global ambassador with an €86 million deal, and figures such as former soccer player Sergio Agüero.
Following Graven's death, both Drake and streamer Adin Ross—another of Kick's most controversial faces—announced that they would pay for the young Frenchman's funeral. The gesture exposed the close relationship between the platform, its ambassadors, and the economic structure that unites Kick and Stake in a single multimillion-dollar business.
The future of Kick and Ed Craven's empire will depend on how far international regulators decide to go. For now, the platform continues to accumulate followers and profits, at the cost of offering a scenario where the line between entertainment and exploitation is increasingly blurred.