Family’s Safety Is At Risk As Director Pushes for Season 2 of Netflix’s “In The Name Of God: A Holy Betrayal”
At a press conference for Netflix‘s docuseries In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal, director Cho Sung Hyun addressed the controversies and doubts regarding the show.
In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal is a Netflix original that examines the tragedies of four people who shook the nation by calling themselves gods and abusing victims who claimed to be followers of them. Victims who have suffered lifelong pain from the terrible crimes committed by these cult leaders bravely shared their testimonies to prevent further harm. Through their brutal but honest testimonies, the full extent of the tragedy was revealed to the public, causing a resounding impact and shock throughout South Korea.
The press conference was held slightly differently from most press conferences—there was unusual tension. Security was strict and the sign announcing the location of the event omitted the title of the program as a precautionary measure. This was most likely due to the threats and coercion from cult followers while filming and releasing In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal.
Director Cho Sung Hyun admitted that he and his family have been struggling because of these threats. He stated that when a radio broadcast mentioned the possibility of a season 2, his wife declared that she would take their children and leave him. However, this did not stop Cho Sung Hyun as he believed this was a story that needed to be told.
This is not the first Cho Sung Hyun mentioned his safety being in danger while filming this docuseries. He previously stated that members of the JMS (also known as Christian Gospel Mission) stalked and threatened him and the victims while filming, and even mysteriously knew private information about the filming process.
Cho Sung Hyun has been devoted to this project for the past two years because he knows cult victims among his friends and family.
There are also cult victims in my family. The friends by my side are also victims. So to me, this wasn’t someone else’s story. It was my own story. That’s why I thought I needed to deal with this topic, and it was like doing a homework assignment.
The director has also stated in a previous interview that the brutal claims of the victims were only one-tenth of what really happened and that the reality was a lot worse.
