Netflix Viewers Compare Disturbing New Documentary To Real-Life Handmaid's Tale

Netflix users have flooded to Twitter in horror over one of the streaming service's latest true-crime documentary releases.

Amid the coronavirus lockdown, many of us relied on Netflix to keep us entertained, getting particularly sucked into true-crime documentaries such as Tiger King and Don't F**k With Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer.

Despite the pandemic coming to an end, our thirst for killers, suspects and crime has continued. However, one recent release has proven to be too much for even the biggest true-crime fans.

The new true-crime series which has left viewers tossing and turning in their beds at night is Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey.

Netflix's official synopsis reads: "In 2008, a dramatic raid at the Yearning for Zion Ranch in West Texas generated attention around the world, as law enforcement agents uncovered stunning evidence of sexual, physical and psychological abuse and took 400+ children into custody.

"[The series] gives viewers an in-depth look into the secretive sect (FLDS) and the rise of self-professed prophet Warren Jeffs."

The series comprises of four episodes, each focusing on the 'harrowing personal stories of some of the courageous women and men who escaped'.

The documentary also includes 'never-before-seen archival footage'.

"From forced underage marriage and pregnancy to a complete unravelling into an oppressive criminal cult under Warren Jeffs' rule, the story uncovers extraordinary bravery battling tyrannical control in modern America," the synopsis continues.

However, the series has proven too much for some viewers and even reminded them of another harrowing series.

One user said: "I watched ‘Keep Sweet, Prey and Obey’ last night and cannot get it out of my noggin. It’s really 2022 and we’re literally living in the Handmaid’s Tale."

The Handmaid's Tale is a 1985 novel written by Margaret Atwood which was later turned into an American dystopian television series.

Similarly to Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey – but set in a fictional setting – the Atwood adaptation sees society taken over by a religious fanatic regime which sees fertile women treated as slaves due to fertility rates having fallen dramatically.

Another user agreed: "The Keep Sweet Prey and Obey documentary on Netflix feels like Handmaids Tale lite."

The first user reflected that while they 'grew up mostly in Mennonite churches' which are a 'pretty conservative sect of Christianity' with 'misogyny [...] deeply ingrained in that belief system' that it 'doesn't even hold a candle to the FLDS'.

"Keep sweet, Pray(more like prey) and obey is actually terrifying. How many other churches use God to scare people into doing ABSURD things?" a third user added.

Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey first premiered on Netflix on 8 June.

If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via [email protected]  

Topics: Netflix, True crime, Twitter, Viral

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.