If you’ve spent your weekends binge-watching HBO’s The Vow and have found yourself on the hunt for more cult-related documentaries—you’re certainly not alone.
Growing a cult following (no pun intended) in both fiction—hello, Midsommar–and non-fiction, cults have become a popular plot point in many TV shows and films.
And seeing as 2020 has given us the gift of time at home, why not satisfy your curiosity cravings and learn a thing or two about some of history’s most prolific cults—and the celebrities involved in them?
If you’re in the mood for a chilling lesson in human behaviour, we’ve rounded up 10 of the best documentaries about cults to satisfy your true crime curiosity.
Wild, Wild Country (2018)
Igniting the world when it dropped in 2018, Wild Wild Country focused on Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh—otherwise known as Osho—and his Rajneeshpuram community. The community relocated to Wasco County, Oregon in the 1980s, which set the resident locals up for a war with Osho’s second-in-command, Ma Anand Sheela.
Watch it here.
My Scientology Movie (2015)
Following filmmaker Louis Theroux, the 2015 documentary aims to learn about the inner workings of the world’s most mysterious religious organisations. Theroux meets with several former members, including Marty Rathbun, who had at one point been one of the highest-ranking members of the church.
Watch it here.
Waco: The Rules Of Engagement (1997)
Waco: The Rules Of Engagement follows the 51-day standoff between members of the FBI and the Branch Davidians at their compound in Waco, Texas. Led by David Koresh, the Branch Davidians were a religious group that thought that Koresh was a prophet. There are allegations that Koresh was committing child abuse, a fact widely believed to have contributed to the siege by the FBI.
Watch it here.
Children Of God (1994)
Children Of God features Sylvia Padilla and her children, who describe their time inside the Children of God cult. Said cult was founded by David Berg and Children of God—now known as “the Family”—was founded in Huntington Beach, California in the late 1960s. The religious group soon became notorious for their views on and encouragement of such practices as “flirty fishing” and their authorisation of sexual abuse of minors. The heartbreaking documentary features Padilla and her daughters recounts on how these practices impacted them directly.
Watch it here.
The Source Family (2012)
The Source Family follows Father Yod and his “spiritual commune” located in the Hollywood Hills in the late 1960s. His followers became known as the Source Family, and the group practised communal living, ate a vegetarian diet, and lived off of the earnings from Yod’s restaurant. The Source Family also formed a rock band, habitually smoked marijuana and took LSD, and gave themselves new names like “Isis” and “Prism.” However, the group had a darker side, including them being forbidden to use modern medicine and things like antibiotics to treat illnesses.
Watch it here.
Deprogrammed (2016)
Deprogrammed follows a man named Ted “Black Lightning” Patrick, a man who spent much of his career in the 1970s “deprogramming” former cult members. Filmmaker Mia Donovan first met Patrick when she was just 13-years-old when he was asked by her stepfather to help deprogram her brother Matthew. The film explores the extreme lengths Patrick would go to break the hold cults may have had on people, including kidnapping and rigorous questioning.
Watch it here.
Holy Hell (2016)
Holy Hell tells the story of its documentarian, Will Allen, who spent 22 years in the Buddhafield cult. Allen—a member of the LGBTQ+ community—began following the doctrine of Buffhafield’s leader, Michel Rostand, after his mother learned of his sexuality and he was invited to an “alternative” community up in the Hollywood Hills. Currently, there are still 100 or so members living with Rostand on his Hawaii compound.
Watch it here.
Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator (2019)
The 2014 documentary explores the rise and fall of Bikram himself, the man who popularised Bikram yoga. Bikram Choudhury may seem rather innocent when compared to the likes of Charlie Manson or Joe Exotic, but the “hot yoga” guru was more predatorial than you’d think. Some of his actions included luring young women into his cult and gaslighting them into being part of his nubile harem.
Watch it here.
Prophet’s Prey (2015)
This 2015 documentary is based on the 2011 book Prophet’s Prey: My Seven-Year Investigation Into Warren Jeffs And The Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints. The film follows Warren Jeffs, the head of the FLDS church who was tried and jailed for the sexual assault of teenage girls. Jeffs is still in charge of the organisation despite being in prison, and the documentary chronicles much of the shady dealings and abuse that other members of the church experienced.
Watch it here.
Sons of Perdition (2010)
An OWN Network original, Sons Of Perdition follows the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Within the group, “sons of perdition” refers to people who—after death—will not be able to receive the glory of the Lord. The 2010 documentary follows three teenage boys after leaving the polygamist Mormon sect they were born into. Sons of Perdition is a slow-moving, unusual coming-of-age story. The three subjects leave their families and everything they’ve ever known, and taste the exhilaration—and terror—of freedom.
Watch it here.
Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst (2004)
Director Robert Stone chronicles the bizarre story of Patty Hearst, granddaughter of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. In 1974, Hearst was kidnapped by a fringe domestic terrorist group known as the Symbionese Liberation Army while attending the University of California. She then joined the group, taking the pseudonym “Tania”. Hearst would eventually be convicted for helping the group with a bank robbery, and become a poster child for Stockholm Syndrome.
Watch it here.
The Family (2019)
An enigmatic conservative Christian group known as the Family wields strong influence in Washington, D.C., in pursuit of its global ambitions. The Family examines the conservative group—also known as the Fellowship—its history, and investigates its influence on American politics.
Watch it here.
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