Trust Me: The False Prophet director reveals Sam Bateman is still controlling his wives from prison

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The Netflix documentary Trust Me is gaining attention, and the director recently revealed that its subject, Sam Bateman, appears to still be contacting and controlling his wives from prison through phone calls.

Trust Me: The False Prophet tells the story of Sam Bateman, a man who claimed to be a prophet and gained influence within the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

After Warren Jeffs, the leader of the FLDS church, was imprisoned for sexually abusing children, Bateman saw an opportunity. He asserted that Jeffs was communicating through him and then declared himself a prophet.

John Bateman married several women, including some as young as nine, and abused them sexually. He was arrested in 2022 and imprisoned, but even from jail, he seems to maintain control over his wives.

Sam Bateman makes daily calls to his wives from prison

I was watching the ‘Trust Me: The False Prophet’ doc and it’s seriously messed up. They show Sam Bateman video and audio calling his wives while he was in jail. It’s clear he was doing it to control them, even from behind bars. It’s really disturbing to see.

Documentary filmmaker Rachel Dretzin notes that Bateman still portrays himself as a victim, and this pattern continues even now.

She described talking to him as a form of brainwashing. It’s as if he’s directly instilling absolute conviction in people – the belief that he has a direct line to a higher power.

Naomi Bistline, known as Nomz, was both a wife of Larry Bateman and a witness against him in court. She explains that as long as he maintained contact, he continued to exert control, a dynamic she believes persists even now, which she finds deeply upsetting.

She shares, “I truly feel for them because I’ve been in their shoes and understand their struggles.”

Christine Marie, who secretly filmed much of the documentary series, thinks pressure on followers should ease up. She explains that once people leave the group and its leader, they can start to question things. They might realize he fabricated everything to gain money, power, and sexual control – just like any other cult leader.

These women deserve the chance to live freely, experience genuine love, and understand the truth. True freedom isn’t possible when someone is trapped in a false reality.

Dretzin believes the documentary could empower individuals to make a change, saying he hopes it will give them the courage and a new outlook to leave their current situation.

You can now watch the documentary Trust Me: The False Prophet on Netflix. If you’re interested in other true crime stories, check out details on the Skylar Neese case, how to stream Storyville: The Darkest Web, and the identity of HSTikkyTokky’s father.

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2026-04-17 13:50