A new HBO docuseries, 'Bring Me The Beauties: A Model Cult,' is shedding light on the 20th-century cult story of Eternal Values, which lured in supermodels, socialites, and young professionals with promises of spiritual greatness.
The cult, founded by Frederick von Mierers, who claimed to be an alien from Arcturus, operated in the 1980s and 90s and promised its followers would be saved from a predicted global disaster.
Former supermodel Hoyt Richards, a key figure in the docuseries, describes von Mierers as a charismatic leader who drew people in through flattery and the promise of belonging, but the experience inside the group was far darker, with members facing public humiliation and forced celibacy.
Richards, who gave the group millions of dollars from his modeling earnings, eventually left the cult after questioning its beliefs and being subjected to humiliation sessions.
The organization effectively ceased to exist in 2002, and Richards has since spent 25 years processing his experience and turning it into something purposeful.
