- By Manish Pandey
- BBC Newsbeat
Image source, Getty Images
Jake Paul has found success in the boxing world, with some lucrative fights against former UFC stars
YouTuber Jake Paul has claimed he was physically abused by his dad growing up.
The 26-year-old social media star-turned boxer made the allegations in a Netflix documentary about his life.
He says his father Greg "would slap" him when he was younger.
Greg Paul also takes part in the show where he denies the claims - saying he had "never laid a hand" on his sons but admitted to throwing them "on a couch couple times".
Jake's older brother Logan goes on to describe their father as "a menace" in the documentary.
The YouTuber, who is now a WWE wrestler, says Jake is "still traumatised to this day about how my dad treated him".
"And they still don't get along like they should," he says.
"Jake may throw around the word abusive, I prefer not quite legal."
Defending himself in the documentary, Greg describes his actions as something "dads are supposed to do".
Image source, Getty Images
Jake says he doesn't "resent" his father Greg for slapping him when he was younger
Despite those allegations, both Jake - who has more than 20 million YouTube subscribers - and Logan credit their father for the success they've found online.
"He was so hard and so tough on us that my brother and I's imaginations really started to flare up," Jake says.
"So one day we get a camera, and we just start filming our lives."
The documentary - Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child - also covered different areas of his life, so here are three other things we learnt about the social media star:
Relationship with Logan
While the brothers are now seen passionately supporting each other, there was a time Jake and Logan weren't on the best of terms.
Jake says it became "a competitive race" when they first became popular, with both of them making content dissing each other.
"We were more focused on business and making money and growing our brands."
Logan also says "there was a point where we hated each other… legitimately, not for clout, not for clicks".
Jake gives an example of when the competition led to Logan doing "some conniving things", like mentioning his ex-girlfriend in one video.
"Logan definitely crossed the line, but I get it from his point of view."
Image source, Getty Images
Logan (left) says he "didn't care at the time how bad I was hurting my little brother"
But it was moments of adversity that brought them together again.
"In those moments of peril, Jake and I realised we will always be there for each other no matter what," Logan says.
Happiness through boxing
Jake has become a commercially successful boxer in his own right, with a 6-1 record as a professional.
In the documentary he says he took up the sport because of a need to find happiness again.
"Boxing reinvigorated something inside of me. It made me feel alive again, like I had something to work for."
He says he felt he was "not only not making progress, but I was hurting myself" on YouTube.
"For the longest time I didn't like myself. I wasn't happy.
"And so when I got into something [where] I could slowly make progress, it brought back happiness in my life."
A need for showbiz
Jake's fights have led to big box office revenues and interest, with Mike Tyson crediting the brothers for increasing interest in boxing.
But while he's very serious about the sport, he says he still loves the glitz, glamour and attention.
"Boxing is the showbusiness, but first and foremost it's a show," he says.
Jake says after being the villain on YouTube, it's easier to play that role in boxing when promoting fights.
"In the world of YouTube, when I was a villain, my videos would get demonetised.
"Sponsors didn't really wanna mess with me because I was controversial and polarising.
"In the world of boxing, being the villain is the best thing."
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