Exclusive Follow-Up Documentary, Filming This Summer in Arizona and Utah, Promises a Revolutionary Approach to Storytelling—Focusing on Restorative Justice, Second Chances, and Healing a Community Shattered by History Repeating Itself
LOS ANGELES – June 12, 2026 – In a landmark acquisition that is already generating intense industry buzz, acclaimed Executive Producer and Director Sir David T. Fagan and a coalition of producers known for their radical ethical filmmaking have purchased the exclusive rights to tell the next chapter of the story that captivated the world.
The project serves as the follow-up to the explosive #1 Netflix documentary Trust Me: The False Prophet, which dominated the platform in April 2026. While the original series chronicled the undercover takedown of the self-proclaimed prophet Samuel Bateman, the new film will pivot dramatically to center on two of his wives (some call victims), the biological sisters Shandra and Marona Johnson.
The documentary is scheduled to begin filming this summer on location in Short Creek, Arizona, and Colorado City, Utah—the very epicenter of the polygamist movement once ruled by Warren Jeffs and later by Bateman. The film is slated for a December 2026 release.
A RECAP OF THE PHENOMENON: TRUST ME: THE FALSE PROPHET
Trust Me: The False Prophet is a four-part documentary series directed by Rachel Dretzin. The series follows cult expert Christine Marie and her husband Tolga Katas as they infiltrate a polygamist sect, documenting a modern crisis of faith and abuse hidden in plain sight.
The subject of the documentary, Samuel Bateman, was a convicted sex offender who led a splinter group of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). Claiming authority after Warren Jeffs’ imprisonment, Bateman amassed more than 20 “wives,” including several underage girls, before ultimately being sentenced to 50 years in prison on federal charges, including child sexual abuse and transportation of minors across state lines.
The series was an immediate phenomenon. Within its first week, it stormed to the top of Netflix’s charts, amassing 6.9 million views and earning a rare 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. It has been described as “mind-blowing” and “essential binge viewing” that viewers “can’t stop” watching.
However, while audiences saw the downfall of the prophet, they did not see the complete story of the women left behind. Particularly, they did not hear the voices of the Johnson sisters.
THE JOHNSON SISTERS: A STORY OF SURVIVAL AND INCARCERATION
Shandra and Marona Johnson are two of five biological sisters who were among Bateman’s plural wives. Unlike the typical victim narrative, these two women were swept up in a system of coercion that led them down a harrowing path. They ultimately faced a tragic twist of justice: they went to jail themselves.
While their mother, Julia Johnson, eventually turned FBI informant to help bring the sect down, Shandra and Marona were among the wives indicted on federal charges related to obstructing the investigation and abetting the cult leader. Marona Johnson, Bateman’s “first plural wife,” and the other Johnson sisters have remained largely silent—until now.
Remarkably, even as their story became the subject of the world’s most-watched documentary, the Johnson sisters have never seen Trust Me: The False Prophet. Living in isolation and navigating the repercussions of their past, they have been unable or unwilling to view the series. The Johnson sisters approach the project with a mix of nerves and determination — never having sought the spotlight, they are now stepping into it deliberately, driven by a need to reclaim their own narrative and speak directly to the families and communities asking questions only they can answer.
ANNOUNCING THE FOLLOW-UP: A RADICAL NEW APPROACH
Enter Sir David T. Fagan. Known for his disruptive, ethical approach to true storytelling, Fagan has secured the exclusive life rights through their publisher Zehra Mahoon and access to Shandra and Marona Johnson. But this is not a typical filmmaker-victim transaction.
“We are not coming in as shock jocks looking for sensationalism,” says Fagan. “This community has been ruined by Warren Jeffs, and then it had history repeat itself with Samuel Bateman. We are bringing in a team of trauma-informed producers and self-improvement experts to work alongside our crew. We aren’t just here to get their side of the story; we are here to help them grow.”
The new documentary will cover three distinct and unexplored time periods:
1. The Aftermath: What happened when the story broke and their mother turned informant, leading to the sisters’ incarceration.
2. The Reckoning: The sisters’ fight to stop the generational cycle of abuse, and their perspective on how victims were persecuted even as the perpetrators were jailed.
3. The Rebirth: Life since then—focusing on forgiveness, redemption, second chances, and overcoming the profound isolation of being raised in what many consider a cult and then abandoned by the justice system.
While mainstream outlets like People, Time, and USA TODAY have extensively covered the crimes of Samuel Bateman, none have secured the level of access that Fagan’s “radical ethical filmmaking” process has granted. The crew will embed in Short Creek to capture not just testimony, but the slow, difficult process of community healing.
“There is a lot that has never been told before,” adds Fagan. “New things are coming to light from within this community that will amaze people. But more importantly, we want to ask the hard question: How do we stop history from repeating itself again?”
The film is currently casting and crewing up with experts and producers Angela Legh, Dr. Kelley Gurley, Justine Reiss, Dr. Tina Koopersmith, Isabel Donadio, Kelly Etter, and Dennis DiNoia on board. The project is fully financed and slated for a high-profile December 2026 release, just in time for awards season consideration.
Isabel Donadio is a Freelance Writer, Bestselling Author, Publisher of Bestselling Books the world around, and the Founder of Top Talent Agency.
