Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Troubling docuseries discusses violence, abuse, strength.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
How I Escaped My Cult
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Narrated by Tamron Hall, HOW I ESCAPED MY CULT is a 10-episode docuseries featuring folks who found a way to escape a modern-day cult. Each installment tells the story of someone who was either born into, raised in, or became an adult member of an organization or non-secular group with a charismatic leader that introduced ideologies intended to answer to life's questions. They share what it was like being a member of the group, what their leader was really like behind closed doors, and how they and other members were manipulated into normalizing and accepting exploitation and abuse. The events that prompted them to leave (or in most cases flee) these cults despite the risks to themselves and others, and how they did it, are also topics of discussion. Interviews with cult experts help explain how difficult this process is and why. Investigators and lawyers working on these cases share the difficulties associated with arresting cult leaders, and how the courage of former members who come forward made it possible to prosecute them. Dramatic reenactments, archive photographs, video footage, and audio recordings help flesh out what cult life is like and the experience of leaving it.
Is It Any Good?
The mildly sensational true crime series offers harrowing tales of what it was like for people to be trapped in a cult and how they found the inner strength to free themselves. Some of the How I Escaped My Cult stories discuss the escape from organizations or nonsecular groups that have gained international notoriety for being a modern-day cult, such as NVIUM, the FLDS, and La Luz del Mundo. But the lesser-known groups featured here, like The Pilgrims and Nuwaubian Nation, are no less problematic or dangerous. How vulnerable individuals were recruited into these cults is troubling, but the accounts offered by those who were born into a cult, or brought into one as small children, are even sadder, especially when they describe extreme enforcement of patriarchal gender norms that dictated their lives, and which usually included sexual abuse, often with the knowledge of their parents. These narratives are offered in context, but How I Escaped My Cult manages to spotlight these horrors without lot of graphic content. It also underscores the courage and toughness each person featured needed to remove themselves mentally, physically, and emotionally from who and what was holding them captive and rebuild their lives.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk bout the reasons people join cults. Does it have to do with the group's recruiting methods? Or how vulnerable a person is when they are recruited?
How do former cult members featured in How I Escaped My Cult describe what life was like immediately after leaving their respective groups? Was it as easy or happy as they'd hoped it would be?
TV Details
- Premiere date : February 20, 2025
- Cast : Tamron Hall
- Network : Freeform
- Genre : Reality TV
- Character Strengths : Courage
- TV rating :
- Last updated : February 25, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate