Was I in a Cult?

Hoyt Richards, a "Was I in a Cult?" legend, is back.
After our original three-part series, Hoyt returns to talk about Bring Me The Beauties, the new HBO documentary about his life inside, and eventual escape from, the cult known as Eternal Values.
It's a conversation about what happens after your story is out there for all the world to see. What the doc captured, what still haunts him, and how love, family, and hard-won accountability helped bring him back to himself.
And just when you thought Hoyt's story had reached its final frame, it may not be done with the screen just yet…
Today, Hoyt is an actor, writer, and producer, who works to support cult survivors and families affected by high-control groups.
FIND HOYT:
Website (speaking, blog & cult-recovery resources): https://www.hoytrichards.com
Instagram: @hoytrichardsofficial
Watch his new HBO docuseries
"Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" — directed by Chris Smith (Fyre, Bad Vegan, American Movie), streaming now on HBO Max.
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FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult
SUPPORT THE SHOW
Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)
 
HAVE A CULTY STORY?
Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

A dear friend of the show, Hoyt Richards, who we had on the show back in 2023, has a new HBO docuseries "Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" featuring his story. We caught up with Hoyt to discuss everything. But before we air that, we're going to re-releasing our original three-parter we did on his incredible story. 
Before the footage, before the headlines, before the world could see the jawline for themselves, Hoyt shared his story with us. 
Listen here, watch the doc, and come back next week for our brand-new interview with Hoyt about what it's like to have a hit documentary about your very personal life out there for the world to see.  
THIS IS PART 2 ... 


The now quasi-famous group takes it to the next level. They get a name, a book, a show, a hit song, and a distant star doomsday getaway. Hoyt, meanwhile, becomes his own star, modeling for millions but returning home to sleep on the floor. All is going well (or so they think) until the group puts a well-known phrase to the test. Is there really no such thing as bad press?

 
FIND HOYT:
Website (speaking, blog & cult-recovery resources): https://www.hoytrichards.com
Instagram: @hoytrichardsofficial
Watch his new HBO docuseries
"Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" — directed by Chris Smith (Fyre, Bad Vegan, American Movie), streaming now on HBO Max.
___________________________________

FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult

SUPPORT THE SHOW
Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)
 
HAVE A CULTY STORY?

Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

A dear friend of the show, Hoyt Richards, who we had on the show back in 2023, has a new HBO docuseries "Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" featuring his story. We caught up with Hoyt to discuss everything. But before we air that, we're going to re-releasing our original three-parter we did on his incredible story. 
Before the footage, before the headlines, before the world could see the jawline for themselves, Hoyt shared his story with us. 
Listen here, watch the doc, and come back next week for our brand-new interview with Hoyt about what it's like to have a hit documentary about your very personal life out there for the world to see.  
THIS IS PART 1 ... 

It was 1978, and the effortlessly handsome Hoyt Richards was a 16-year-old football talent summering in Nantucket. Chasing girls and free beer was about all on this young boy's mind. So when he meets a man on the beach who was rumored to throw great parties, Hoyt thinks nothing of it. Little did Hoyt know & he had just come face-to-face with a budding cult leader that would take his life in a direction he never could've dreamed. 
 
FIND HOYT:
Website (speaking, blog & cult-recovery resources): https://www.hoytrichards.com
Instagram: @hoytrichardsofficial
Watch his new HBO docuseries
"Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" — directed by Chris Smith (Fyre, Bad Vegan, American Movie), streaming now on HBO Max.
___________________________________

FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult

SUPPORT THE SHOW
Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)
 
HAVE A CULTY STORY?

Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

A dear friend of the show, Hoyt Richards, who we had on the show back in 2023, has a new HBO docuseries "Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" featuring his story. We caught up with Hoyt to discuss everything. But before we air that, we're going to re-releasing our original three-parter we did on his incredible story. 
Before the footage, before the headlines, before the world could see the jawline for themselves, Hoyt shared his story with us. 
Listen here, watch the doc, and come back next week for our brand-new interview with Hoyt about what it's like to have a hit documentary about your very personal life out there for the world to see.  
 
THIS IS PART 3 ... 

 

 
The final part of Hoyt Richards' incredible journey into and out of a UFO doomsday cult. The damning Vanity Fair article throws Hoyt's family into chaos as they attempt to intervene. And right when you think he might finally be getting out, his fellow brothers go to extreme lengths to keep their financial backer from leaving. And it works. Until it finally doesn't. Thank you again, Hoyt. He is a brave and inspirational human, and we loved having him on the show.

 
FIND HOYT:
Website (speaking, blog & cult-recovery resources): https://www.hoytrichards.com
Instagram: @hoytrichardsofficial
Watch his new HBO docuseries
"Bring Me the Beauties: A Model Cult" — directed by Chris Smith (Fyre, Bad Vegan, American Movie), streaming now on HBO Max.
___________________________________

FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult


SUPPORT THE SHOW

Join our Patreon! Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)


HAVE A CULTY STORY?

Email us → info@wasiinacult.com

As Cassie on Skins and Gilly on "Game of Thrones," Hannah Murray spent years stepping into other people's pain, other people's stories, other people's worlds. But after shooting a brutal scene for a film that left her body wrecked, Hannah went looking for relief.
A trainer suggested a healer. And that healer became the doorway into a world that promised magic, ancient wisdom, secret knowledge, and above all, a way to finally heal the pain Hannah had been carrying around for years. 
And as these things so often go, at first it worked.
Until it really, really didn't.
Hannah is a dream guest. Thoughtful, funny, self-aware, and deeply honest. Her memoir, "The Make-Believe: A Memoir of Magic and Madness," tells the full story, and it is as gripping as it is beautifully written.
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Hannah's Memoir:
"The Make-Believe: A Memoir of Magic and Madness," is out June 23 in the U.S. and available now in the UK.
FOLLOW US  → For more culty content — follow us on Instagram & TikTok → @wasiinacult

SUPPORT THE SHOW
Join our Patreon! Tyler's documentary "An Honest Liar" available now for all members! And get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and behind-the-scenes conversations. (And our forever gratitude)
 
HAVE A CULTY STORY?

Email us → info@wasiinacult.com