Trust Me: The False Prophet - Where are the survivors of the FLDS cult now? Details revealed 

Netflix’s Trust Me: The False Prophet returns to the terrifying story of FLDS breakaway leader Samuel Bateman, but its strongest gaze is after his arrest, especially at the women and children who lived under his rule. Ultimately, it’s a very mixed result: all of the underage victims have now left the cult and spoken out, while only a handful of adult women have fled, with many still supporting Bateman in spite of his incarceration.

Some women have established new lives and new identities outside the cult, while others are still mentally connected to Bateman. The experiences of survivors such as Nomz, Moretta, and Julia illustrate both the enduring trauma of indoctrination and the potential for healing, resistance, and transformation.

Read on to know where these survivors of the cult are now.

Julia Johnson is rebuilding her life, while Naomi is reclaiming her identity in Trust Me: The False Prophet

Julia Johnson emerged as one of the most crucial figures in bringing Bateman down, as shown in Trust Me: The False Prophet. She secretly passed information to authorities and defied demands to turn over her daughters to him as “wives.”

Today, Julia no longer has her husband, Moroni Johnson, who is serving a long prison term for his part in the crimes. She continues to communicate with cult specialist Christine Marie and is probably one of the most widely regarded heroic people who risked everything to keep her children safe and expose the abuse.

Some of her daughters are still buried in the belief system, but Julia Bateman has emphatically left and continues to move on without Bateman’s influence, as shown in Trust Me: The False Prophet.

Naomi “Nomz” Bistline was one of Bateman’s keeners, going so far as to defend him in public. Her turning point was after she was arrested and went to prison, a process she characterized as painful yet transformative.

Nomz is no longer in the cult, and she is rebuilding her life. She still lives in Short Creek, but she is emotionally and socially detached from the community and wants to get out for good.

She’s dabbled in music, art, and writing, and is even working with vocal coaches and other creatives. She has also started to tell her story publicly to raise awareness of the abuse perpetuated in cults, marking a transition from victim to advocate.

Moretta Johnson is starting over after prison in Trust Me: The False Prophet

Moretta Johnson, taken as a child “wife,” also testified against Bateman in Trust Me: The False Prophet. Like Nomz, she was locked up, and her jail time changed her for the better. It gave her the first chance to think for herself.

Since her release, Moretta has fully walked away from the FLDS splinter group, married, and had children. Today, her life stands as one of the most clear-cut examples of restoration after trauma, and she holds hands with Nomz as they support each other.

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The reality is something quite different for the vast majority of survivors. All the underage girls who were rescued from Bateman’s control have, as of now, turned against him and testified, largely because they were taken out of the situation and into foster care.

Only many grown-up adherents from among those deceased continue to believe in Bateman and are in contact with him, while he is serving his sentence of 50 years in prison. This underlines the enduring psychological hold of cult indoctrination, in which a physical separation does not always allow or lead to a separation of emotions or ideology, so to speak.

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