People Magazine Investigates: Cults
People Magazine Investigates: Cults explores shocking stories of ordinary people who, lured by promises of eternal life, get caught up in a terrifying web of abuse, deception, and manipulation. PEOPLE journalists cover the deeply disturbing world of cults through the eyes of survivors who managed to escape.
Genre: Documentary
Cast:Theresa Croft , Nathalie Frederick , Jess Cagle , Anna Andersen , Dennis Connors , Shonnon Marshall , Dan Wakeford , Samantha Wendorf , Roger Hervas , Sly Augustus , Seamus Higgins , Omrae Smith , Omrae Smith , Clayton Grimm , Carl Burrows , Julian Mileta , Estelle Girard Parks , Bix Krieger
S2.E1 ∙ Children of God
Prophet David Berg attracts thousands of followers as the Children of God cult spreads through communes around the world. But his free love message turns sinister, espousing prostitution, sexual abuse of children and rampant violence in prison camps.
S2.E2 ∙ Manson Family Murders
In the late 60s, Charles Manson entices dozens of young women to live with him in a California desert commune. The facade breaks when Manson orders his followers to commit a string of gruesome murders that 50 years later, still haunt the nation's psyche.
S2.E3 ∙ Heaven's Gate
In 1997, Heaven's Gate leader Marshall Applewhite convinces 39 people to follow him to their graves; the world sees the event as the largest mass suicide on U.S. soil, but for Applewhite's followers, it is a way to catch a UFO to heaven.
S2.E4 ∙ The Sinful Messiah
In 2014, a severed human leg draws attentions to The Work, an apocalyptic cult. Known as the Sinful Messiah, Julius Shacknow declares total devotion and terrible sacrifice, called the "special work," as the only way to achieve eternal salvation.
S2.E5 ∙ The Movement of God
Charismatic preacher Sam Fife inspires a worldwide network of nondenominational Christian groups. To prepare for the apocalypse, followers renounce everything to move to the wilderness where they're subjected to beatings, exorcisms and brainwashing.
S2.E6 ∙ Word of Faith
To this day, lost souls flock to North Carolina where they're promised deliverance from demons by Pastor Jane Whaley at the Word of Faith Fellowship. But deliverance comes at a price, including beatings, medical horrors, and psychological abuse.
