How to Become a Cult Leader

⭐6.8(47 votes)

•2023

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Episodes

32m

1. Build Your Foundation

Embrace your calling and reinvent yourself by studying the life of petty criminal and folk rock troubadour-turned-murderous legend Charles Manson.

32m

2. Grow Your Flock

Build a fervent following by retracing the steps of Jim Jones, whose messiah complex turned a small healing grift into a dangerously loyal congregation.

32m

3. Reform Their Minds

Return to Buddhafield and unlock the mastery of manipulation with Jaimie Gomez, a failed actor who built an army of servants by promising enlightenment.

30m

4. Promise Eternity

Apocalypse, anyone? Create credible danger and consolidate power by studying the spiritual, sci-fi narrative of Heaven's Gate leader Marshall Applewhite.

33m

5. Control Your Image

Leverage media coverage to cultivate a pious image like Shoko Asahara, who built the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo on positive PR and deadly methods.

29m

6. Become Immortal

Avoid unhappy endings and cement your legacy by studying Sun Myung Moon, who transformed the Unification Church into a still-thriving economic machine.

Overview

Look inside the cult leader's playbook for achieving unconditional love, endless devotion and the power to control people's minds, bodies, and souls. Disguised as a guidebook for capturing a devoted cult following, this docuseries takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the rise of six famed flock leaders.