The women of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives have reacted to the backlash they’ve faced from within the church, admitting they 'show their sins publicly'.
Premiered on Hulu on September 6, the hot new reality TV show digs deeper in the lives of eight Utah TikTok influencers of Mormon faith, revealing what really goes on behind the scenes of their picture-perfect day-to-days.
The show has raised some eyebrows from viewers outside the Mormon community, though it seems that members of the LDS church were also eager to distance themselves from the lives of the families depicted on screen.
A quick look at the juicy show, which is available on Disney+ in the UK, may be enough to understand why.
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One of the cast member’s sex scandal was the catalyst for the eight-episode series, with influencer Taylor Frankie Paul revealing she and her husband were 'soft-swinging' with other Mormon couples.
To add to it all, the stars of the show also explained how they occasionally inhale laughing gas and do 'ketamine therapy', but frown upon drinking alcohol.
For context, Mormons usually follow the Word of Wisdom, a code of conduct which prohibits alcohol and recreational drugs amongst other things.
Meanwhile, cast member Whitney Leavitt has come under fire for promoting a sex toy on Instagram, as well as a resurfaced TikTok video featuring her infant son that many at the time considered to be insensitive and 'clout chasing'.
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Predicting the show’s mixed reception ahead of release, Mormon Wives star Jessy Ngatikaura said she hopes the church would be more open-minded.
“I hope when the show comes out that the church members will be a little more open minded and realise that we're not against them, we're with them - we're just showing our sins publicly,” she told The Daily Mail.
"I feel like it's a lot of projection," added Paul. "At the end of the day we're not representing those people, we're representing ourselves and our stories - and our message is that we're not all the same and we don't all live the same.
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"There's different spectrums of Mormonism and it's unfortunate that we're getting judged so harshly before they've even seen it."
The women have been on the receiving end of some negative comments ever since the show was announced earlier this year.
Cast members Jen Affleck - the cousin of the Ben Affleck - and Mikayla Matthews said that they stopped reading comments on social media due to the trolling.
"It's the keyboard warriors - nobody's gonna say that to your face," said Mikayla, who had a baby with her husband when she was 16 and he was 21.
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"For me I'm seeing [the show] as a good opportunity to still represent the church and empower other people in the church who maybe feel like they can't fully be their authentic selves or talk about their flaws or their imperfect marriages and that's what I'm here to do," explained Jen.
Demi Engemann, who on the show explained she and her husband do 'ketamine therapy' to strengthen their marriage, said she's 'pretty open' about her sex life with Brett.
"We're pretty open with how obsessed we are with each other and how we push the boundaries and have fun with it for sure," she said.
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For some cast members, including Mayci Neely, the show is a gateway to get more lucrative sponsorship deals on social media.
"I'm hoping if anything it should help me get more brand deals," she said. "You don't get paid a ton in reality TV, but you can if your following grows and you get more brand deals, so that's the hope!"
Shortly after the show was announced in July, a statement condemning unfair portrayals of Mormons in media appeared on the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints website.
"Some portrayals are fair and accurate, but others resort to stereotypes or gross misrepresentations that are in poor taste and have real-life consequences for people of faith," the statements reads.
"While this is not new, a number of recent productions depict lifestyles and practices blatantly inconsistent with the teachings of the Church. Others irresponsibly mischaracterize the safety and conduct of our volunteer missionaries.
"We understand the fascination some in the media have with the Church, but regret that portrayals often rely on sensationalism and inaccuracies that do not fairly and fully reflect the lives of our Church members or the sacred beliefs that they hold dear."
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives airs on Hulu in the US. In the UK, the show airs on Disney+.
Topics: Reality TV, TV And Film, US News, Disney
Stefania Sarrubba