Featured Image Credit: Netflix
Topics: Netflix, Celebrity, TV And Film
Rhianna Benson
It may have landed on Netflix over two weeks ago, but true crime fanatics are seemingly STILL obsessed with the streaming service's chilling new addition, Dancing for the Devil.
If you haven't yet had a chance to sink your teeth into the three-part documentary and it still resides on your 'to watch' list, allow us to let you in on what's ahead...
The docuseries tells the sinister story of a group of rising TikTok stars who - back in 2019 - were approached by a Los Angeles-based management label named 7M Films, the CEO of which - Robert Shinn - claimed to want to represent each and every one of them.
It turned out, however, that upon signing with the label, members of the group were intrinsically adopted into a Shekinah Church, which had been set up in the years prior and led by Robert himself, who was its pastor.
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Amongst those to have signed with the group were social media sensations Melanie and Miranda Wilking, who joined in 2019.
And already part of the group upon their arrival were another set of sisters Melanie and Priscylla Lee, who joined the original church as vulnerable Korean immigrants, prior to its 'conversion' to an entertainment corporation.
In the years that followed, numerous questionable practices became routine for those involved in the group, leading to the eventual accusation that 7M Films was, in fact, a 'cult masquerading as a management company'.
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Thankfully, however, some members of the group grew concerned about the controversial practices that the leaders allegedly encouraged, one of which included cutting off all contact with her own family, forming part of the group's bizarre concept of 'dying'.
In turn, Melanie Wilking and Melanie Lee left their respective sisters behind in an attempt to be free of the restrictive practices.
Whilst the duo went on to rebuild their lives, Miranda and Pryscilla remained with the group until recently, when the latter finally escaped the group.
This also resulted in several other former members of the group accusing group leader Robert Shinn of sexual, emotional and financial abuse - which he denies to this day.
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The series ends by explaining that Shinn - who declined to appear in the documentary - had denied all allegations made against him and has not faced any formal criminal charges.
Instead, he has filed defamation and libel lawsuits against ex-members, three of whom joined a cross-complaint accusing 'Shinn, his wife, their entities and other affiliated individuals' of 'fraud, forced labor and human trafficking, as well as Robert of sexual battery'.
Amongst the countless questions that viewers had after the show - including where the four sisters stand with one another now, where Robert Shinn is currently working, and whether the group are still going - is why they ever went by the name 7M Films in the first place.
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"I can’t believe that Netflix docuseries never stops to explain what the '7M' stands for in '7M TikTok Cult'," one viewer penned on social media.
Well, according to a Reddit post, 7M is actually named according to the 'Seven Mountain Mandate', a dominionist conservative Christian movement, which says there seven aspects of society that believers seek to influence - family, religion, education, media, arts & entertainment, business, and government.
While this was never confirmed, it is a belief which is also supported by another viewer, who wrote on X: "I’m watching the first episode of 7m tik tok cult. Are they gonna get to the meaning of 7M aka 7 mountain dominionists at some point? Or did they just skip over that entirely?"
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Following the release of the documentary, Hannah Shinn, Robert's wife, shared a statement with Tyla.
It reads: "The Netflix docu-series is a slanderous work of fiction, born from a failed extortion attempt, and invented for the sole purpose of gaining fame and fortune.
"Two years ago, Melanie Lee Goldman, Priscylla Leigh aka Elisha Priscylla Leigh and their co-conspirators launched a concerted smear campaign to defame Robert Shinn, his family, and his business associates after Mr. Shinn did not capitulate to Ms. Leigh’s extortion demands.
"Despite sworn statements from co-conspirators that confirm the scheme by Ms. Goldman and Ms. Leigh to disseminate widespread lies, Netflix recklessly provided a global platform to peddle a false narrative that is at the center of ongoing litigation.
"We will continue to pursue all legal remedies available to stop the spread of salacious lies and expect to be fully vindicated in court."