Director reveals the unsettling real-life stories that inspired Netflix’s thriller Unchosen

Netflix’s latest psychological drama Unchosen might be fictional, but the reality behind it is far more unsettling than you’d expect.

The six-part series follows Rosie, a young woman raised inside a secretive religious group known as the Fellowship of the Divine. Life inside the sect is tightly controlled: Technology is forbidden, men and women are kept apart during daily routines, and any exposure to the outside world is heavily restricted

Netflix

Everything begins to unravel when Rosie encounters someone from beyond the group, forcing her to question whether this isolated life is really what she wants.

Although the cult itself is entirely made up, the inspiration behind Unchosen is rooted in very real experiences. Creator Gearey worked closely with former cult members while developing the show, seeking out their stories through online communities and social platforms.

“It was important to reassure them as much as we could that, firstly, nobody watching the show would ever recognize them, and, secondly, that whatever they had to say about the emotional experience of being involved, we would try to respect and reflect as truthfully as possible within the show,” Gearey explained to Netflix’s Tudum.

One recurring theme that shaped the storyline was the struggle many individuals faced around identity, particularly sexuality. According to Gearey, this came up repeatedly in conversations with people who had left such groups.

Netflix

“Several people we met had struggled with their sexuality within these groups,” says Gearey. “That was a story that kept coming up again and again, if you’re not straight, there’s no place for you.”

Most Read

Revealed: The awful screenshot ‘receipts’ of texts Bec sent about other MAFS brides

Hailey Bieber gave an insight into her s*x life with Justin, and guys I’m actually blushing

Here’s when I’m A Celeb South Africa 2026 was filmed and the reason it’s not live

The show doesn’t shy away from depicting the darker side of cult life either. One particularly distressing moment, where a member is punished with excessive alcohol for secretly owning a phone, reflects the kinds of coercive control described in real testimonies.

Actor Asa Butterfield, who plays Adam, also drew on real-world material to build his character. He referenced a 2020 BBC documentary about a strict Christian movement, focusing on one individual whose rigid, almost mechanical behaviour stood out.

Netflix

“Even walking up the steps, he would take it one at a time, almost as though he was scared of falling,” Butterfield said. “I thought that was quite interesting and applied that to Adam, who is someone who has this secret, this thorn of untruth, that he’s holding inside himself.”

While cult-focused stories are often associated with the US, Unchosen deliberately centres a UK setting, and for good reason. Research conducted during development revealed there are thousands of such groups operating across Britain, according to The Independent.

So while Unchosen may not tell a true story, it’s built from fragments of very real ones, and that’s what makes it so unsettling.

For all the latest Netflix news and drops, like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.

Featured image credit: Netflix