Have you ever been interested in starting in your own cult? I certainly hope that the answer would be, “No,” but as a fan of great true crime TV shows and movies, I could definitely understand why you might be interested in learning about people like Charles Manson or Jim Jones from a psychological perspective. If that describes you, then I cannot recommend How to Become a Cult Leader enough.
This companion to the 2021 Netflix original docuseries, How to Become a Tyrant, shifts gears into another dark corner of history and covers a topic that deals with similar themes on a smaller scope, but of an almost equally frightening degree, nonetheless. Before you check out the latest twisted and highly informative non-fiction program you can watch with a Netflix subscription, let’s do what some infamous spiritual leaders did not have the courtesy to do for their followers and give an honest take what you are in for by checking out How to Become a Cult Leader.
A Docuseries Exploring Cult History's Most Notorious Figures
Some of the first names that pop into your head when you think of the history of cults might be Charles Manson, Jim Jones, or Heaven’s Gate founder Marshall Applewhite (whose story was also covered on an HBO docuseries from 2020). All three of them and others serve as the primary basis of each episode of How to Become a Cult Leader, tracing their life stories up to the peak of their infamy as cult leaders and attempting to understand how they managed to persuade so many to bow to their will, and in a particularly unique structure.
It Examines Common Cult Leader Methods In A Guidebook Style
With a title like How to Become a Cult Leader, it should come as no surprise that — much like How to Become a Tyrant — some essential topics related to the subject and the tactics that the featured cult leaders use to rise to prominence are presented as tips. However, the docuseries never attempts to be an earnest instruction of these lessons and maintains a more darkly tongue-in-cheek tone throughout, but without ever making light of the grave subject matter.
Stories Are Told Through Interviews, Archival Footage, And Animated Reenactments
The information presented in How to Become a Cult Leader Enough is coming from people who certainly know what they are talking about, as interviewees include renowned experts in the topic, esteemed psychologists, and even people who were once followers of the cults. Viewers also get a firsthand account of the most well-known events through archival and gain a unique perspective on the featured cult leaders’ lives through stories that are reenacted in imaginative animated sequences.
Narrated By Peter Dinklage
Your “professor,” teaching the ways of the cult leader playbook and recounting the most significant historical facts about the likes of Manson and others is four-time Emmy winner Peter Dinklage. The former Game of Thrones cast member also previously narrated How to Become a Tyrant and, just like on that docuseries, also serves as an executive producer.
It Consists Of Six, Half-Hour Episodes
While there are many shocking stories that managed to fill a feature-length’s time in many great true crime documentaries on Netflix, How to Become a Cult Leader gives you multiple stories to learn about in a total runtime that doubles the standard feature length. As previously mentioned, each of the docuseries’ six episodes focuses on a different notorious figure, whose biography is concisely compacted to just a little more than 30 minutes.
How To Become A Cult Leader Is Rated TV-MA
Given the fact that much of the history surrounding cults is soaked in tragedy and hardship, it probably goes without saying that viewer discretion is advised when watching How to Become a Cult Leader. Netflix gave the docuseries an official rating of TV-MA, meaning only mature audiences are intended to see these events unfold.
As of Friday, July 28th, intrigued true crime and cult history enthusiasts can stream How to Become a Cult Leader on Netflix now.
