The ending of Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult didn’t feel like an ending. As we learned in the new Netflix documentary, bureaucracy and the United States legal system do not provide a clear path to justice when it comes to cults.
Over the course of the three-episode series, the Wilking family fights to reconnect to their estranged daughter, Miranda Derrick, a popular social media dancer who’s believed to be a member of a religious cult led by Shekinah church pastor Robert Shinn. They describe how Shinn allegedly took control of their daughter—and a slew of other Los Angeles dancefluencers—through a shady management company tied to his church.
The Wilkings are joined in their fight by other desperate parents and former Shekinah Church members, who shared harrowing stories of sexual, emotional, and financial abuse at the hands of Shinn and some members of his family. Unfortunately, as the documentary points out, it’s extremely hard to dismantle a cult because they’re not illegal in and of themselves. Instead, victims must come forward with specific criminal accusations or sue for financial compensation.
Despite Shekinah survivors like Priscylla Lee going to the police with accusations of sexual assault and abuse, no charges have officially been filed against Shinn. In fact, Shinn filed a lawsuit against Lee and a group of former 7M dancers for extortion and defamation in October 2022. According to CNN, the group has since filed “a cross-complaint” against Shinn, his wife, and other high-ranking members of the church for “fraud, forced labor, and human trafficking.” Shinn is also being sued for sexual battery. The lawsuit isn’t scheduled to go to trial until 2025.
Meanwhile, the Wilkings still have limited contact with Miranda, though it’s unclear if that will continue now that the documentary has been released. Miranda, her husband James “BDash” Derrick, and others dancers associated with 7M have limited their comments sections since the series dropped on May 29. Nick Raiano, whose parents were also featured in the doc, appears to have deleted his Instagram account, @imraino.
Dancing for the Devil director Derek Doneen says Shinn and the dancers were aware the documentary was coming and that their parents participated. He doesn’t know if they will be allowed to watch it.
“We don’t even know if they’re gonna watch it—if Robert will let them watch it, or if they’ll watch it on their own. I have no concept as to what exposure they’re going to have [to the documentary] and what they’re going to think,” Doneen recently told Glamour in an in-depth interview about the series. “My hope is that they watch it. And my hope is that they just see that this is coming from a place of love, and that the humanity sort of breaks through whatever else might be clouding their ability to make a rational decision when it comes to their family.”
So with everything left up in the air, many are wondering if Netflix will order a follow-up to the three-part series. The answer appears to be…maybe. Doneen told Glamour that while he keeps in contact with the doc’s participants, it “remains to be seen” if that will lead to “additional production.” For that to happen, there would have to be a significant update with the lawsuit, a criminal case against Shinn, or a major update from the dancers who are still believed to live under Shinn’s thumb.
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