Derek Doneen’s three part crime documentary adds to the cons side of Tik Tok as it features mind boggling story of two sisters and a Korean pastor accused of a chain of frauds from embezzlement to sexual abuse and more. The Netflix docuseries follows the journey of the Wilking sisters as they fall victim to the pastor Robert Shinn as they follow their dream to rise to fame through Tik Tok.
The Wilking sisters: Melanie and Miranda
Melanie and Miranda are popularly known by their user handle ‘Wilking Sisters’ on Tik Tok. The sisters began their journey with an account together where they posted short, peppy dance videos. By 2020, the sisters had a follower reach of 3 million on platform. This is when they were introduced to Robert Shinn by Miranda’s boyfriend James “BDash ” Derrick. The sisters joined the management company 7M and its affiliated church Shekinah, both run by Shinn. In 2021, the Wilking sisters stopped posting videos together. Miranda’s estranged behaviour after joining 7M did not sit well with her parents– Dean and Kelly Wilking and sister Melanie.
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Shinn: the self proclaimed ‘man of God’
Robert Shinn is the clever-brain behind the organisation of this Tik Tok based cult. As portrayed in the Netflix documentary, Shinn used to ask the Tik Tok dancers to cut off ties from their loved ones. He used to seduce the artists with promises of success and asked them for money in the name of ‘church purposes’. He also proclaimed himself as the “man of God” who can guide the artists in life and help them differentiate heaven from hell.
Dance for the Devil: The 7M Tik Tok cult
The documentary is an effort by Doneen to narrate the story of cult with family at centre. The aim is to showcase the pain and difficulties that related family members go through when an individual becomes a part of such cults.
As reported by The Guardian, Doneen said “There are a lot of deeply compelling cult documentaries out there “That said, we also didn’t want to make the same show that [audiences] have already seen. It’s really important for us to approach it from a different perspective, one that places the victims and the families at the centre of it and allows them to tell their own story, in their own words, in a way that doesn’t make it about the cult leader.”
The Netflix documentary will stream on 29 May, 2024.