A new documentary just dropped on Netflix. It’s called Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere. As for the concept, Louis Theroux, a renowned British-American documentary filmmaker, set out to investigate the rise of ultra-masculine online influencers and their subcultures. And, within his scenes, Louis places a huge focus on many of these high-profile leaders, otherwise known as “manfluencers.”
What Louis found was not shocking at all. These manfluencers are only trying to make money by selling “solutions,” “online universities,” and more. They do so by asserting their dominance, and then, they lure their potential customers in using a mix of emotional and misogynistic jargon. One example is the “red pill” metaphor that’s commonly used in their pitches.
The “red pill” belief states that these manfluencers and their customers have “woken up” to a reality where men are, brace for it, systematically disadvantaged by women. They aren’t… As Louis explains, following many interviews and investigations, several of these aggressive posturers are actually masking various childhood traumas.
If Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere sounds interesting, wait until you hear about a few of Louis’s other documentaries.
Louis Theroux’s Weird Weekends: Wrestling
For three seasons, Louis the explorer visited many ports of call, documenting everything from over-the-top UFO watchers to swingers. Yet, one of his greatest episodes thus far happened in Season 2. During Episode 6, this little “cockroach” produced a 48-minute-long documentary highlighting the world of professional wrestling. And, after landing on the wrong side of the tracks with DeWayne Bruce, otherwise known as Sergeant “Sarge” Buddy Lee Parker, all hell broke loose.
Louis began his investigations at a live recording of Monday Nitro, a World Championship Wrestling (WCW) event. Backstage, he interviewed various wrestlers, including Sarge, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, and Randy Savage. But then he asked one of the trainers if wrestling was “fake.”
Sarge held this grudge like a pro. So, when Louis headed to his next location, the WCW Power Plant in Atlanta, Georgia, Sarge, who worked out of this location, gave him a proper never-ask-that-again styled hazing. Needless to say, buckets were yacked in, tears were shed, and lessons were learned. But the highlight happened when Louis endured an intense training drill, which saw him (almost) fighting for his life.
In this drill, Louis had to lie down on his back and flail around. He was then made to scream, “I am a dying cockroach because I haven’t got the will to win.” Louis willingly nailed this assignment, resulting in an entertaining episode of his Weird Weekend series.
Louis Theroux: My Scientology Movie
Many people have called out the Church of Scientology. Therefore, in 2016, Louis released a whole film about this organization. “They say it brainwashes people,” Louis said in the trailer. But what did he learn once he actually stepped inside this mysterious world?
The Church of Scientology refused to play along. So, Louis hired an actor named Andrew Perez. Andrew played the role of David Miscavige, Scientology’s leader, and he nailed the part of David in his dramatic retellings.
At Louis’s side was Mark Rathbun. Mark is a former high-ranking Scientologist. In this documentary, Mark expertly walked Louis (and the viewers) through the alleged abuses people endured (and are reportedly still enduring) at the hands of this organization.
Louis also focused on “The Hole,” a facility that reportedly houses senior leaders. Here, these authorities are supposedly subjected to all kinds of abuse, like having to crawl and lick the floors clean.
During his investigations, however, Louis encountered Scientology’s “squirrel buster” teams. They tried to harass Louis into leaving, but he held his ground. As a result, representatives from the Church flipped the script, letting Louis know that they were now making their own documentary about the production crew. What followed next made us gag, showing Louis entertaining one of these camera-wielding operatives.
“Tell him to stop [filming me],” a lady informs Louis. “You tell him to stop,” Louis argues, pointing at her cameraman. And then, they basically repeat these lines ad nauseam.
The Most Hated Family in America
Arguably, one of Louis’ most infamous documentaries originated in 2007. It covered the Phelps family, the humans behind the Westboro Baptist Church, in Topeka, Kansas.
Back then, the Westboro Church had roughly 70 members, who were mostly all carriors of the Phelps bloodline. As Louis showed, these individuals strongly opposed the LGBTQ+ community, who, they believe, are responsible for America’s decline. So, they show up at all kinds of events, from parades to actual churches that tolerate others, carrying their large signs that read “God Hates F*gs.”
The Phelps family has even ruined the funerals of our fallen soldiers, all while brainwashing their youth to keep their legacy alive. In turn, they are easily, as the title implies: One of the most hated families in America.
As Luis attempted to understand their beliefs by speaking with various members of their church, including their young children, he learned a horrific fact. The same harassing tools that they used on the public, well, they also applied those to their very own family members.
Four years later, Louis found the church in a state of conflict in his first follow-up documentary, America’s Most Hated Family in Crisis. Then, in 2019, he filmed one final follow-up series called Surviving America’s Most Hated Family. Within, we learned that one member, Megan Phelps, had thankfully left the church.
TELL US – HAVE YOU SEEN ANY OF LOUIS THEROUX’S DOCUMENTARIES? IF SO, WHICH ONE IS YOUR FAVORITE?
