The mystery surrounding Miranda Derrick, a dancer and TikTok star with more than 2 million followers, is at the heart of the Netflix documentary series “Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult,” now streaming on the platform.
Several dancers formerly signed to management company 7M Films have signed a 2023 lawsuit against 7M Films and its owner, Robert Shinn, as have former members of Shinn’s controversial Shekinah Church.
Miranda Derrick gained attention due to allegations her family made in a video posted to Instagram in 2022, accusing 7M of exercising unhealthy control over its dancers.
Melanie Wilking, Derrick’s sister, is also a popular dancer on TikTok and was at the center of the video that raised questions about 7M.
Melanie Wilking and her parents, Kelly and Dean, participated in the documentary. Miranda Derrick declined to comment.
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- What is the real story behind ‘Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult’?
Who are sisters Miranda Derrick and Melanie Wilking?
Miranda Derrick (née Wilking) began dancing alongside her younger sister, Melanie Wilking, when they were both children, according to Wilking’s interview in the documentary.
After graduating from a performing arts high school, Derrick moved to Los Angeles and worked as a dancer. When Wilking followed in her footsteps the following year, the sisters remained close, filming TikTok videos, entering competitions and teaching classes together. The couple even shared a YouTube channel.
Today, the two have over 7 million followers on TikTok and Instagram combined, and both are married. Derrick married James “BDash” Derrick, a fellow dancer and choreographer who is also very popular with over 5.8 million followers on TikTok.
Miranda Derrick has also dabbled in solo YouTube content, uploading vlogs and reposting TikTok videos that have racked up hundreds of thousands of views as YouTube shorts.
According to social media, Miranda and James Derrick, known as BDash, got engaged in August 2021 and married in February 2022.
In the caption of James Derrick’s Instagram post about the engagement, Shinn’s son, Isaiah Shinn, is identified as the photographer. Isaiah Shinn is named as a defendant in the civil lawsuit pending in 2023.
Wilking is married to NFL pro Austin Ekeler.
What did Miranda Derrick’s family say about 7M?
On Derrick’s 25th birthday in February 2022, Melanie Wilking and her parents went on Instagram Live and, for nearly 40 minutes, described their belief that Derrick was trapped in a “cult.”
“Miranda is part of a religious group and she is not allowed to talk to us,” Melanie Wilking said. She added that she thought Miranda Derrick and the other dancers in the group “weren’t in control of their lives.”
Melanie Wilking and her parents said Miranda Derrick severed all ties with the family after signing with 7M in January 2021 and that they believed she was “brainwashed” by the organization.
“Someone else is controlling their lives, and they’re all victims,” Melanie Wilking continued.
7M Films was founded by Robert Shinn, pastor of the controversial Shekinah Church. Years before Miranda Derrick’s family spoke out about Shekinah, the church was sued by a former member. The trial echoes the brainwashing described by Derrick’s family.
In a 2022 article on 7M Films, Rolling Stone reported that a former Shekinah Church member, Lydia Chung, sued Shinn and several other defendants in 2009 for forcing her to return $3.8 million in property and assets through “undue influence, mind control, coercive persuasion, oppression and other intimidation tactics… all in the name of God. She also claimed she was forced to work six days a week without pay. The judge ultimately ruled against her.
The 2023 civil trial, which is still ongoing, said Shinn and other defendants subjected people to “brainwashing, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, manipulation and exploitation”.
“Shekinah is a cult,” reads the lawsuit, filed in March 2023. “A cult that engages in blatant and despicable illegal behavior. » He later called the Shekinah “a sect operating under the guise of a religious institution.”
How Did Miranda Derrick Respond to Her Family’s Allegations?
A representative for Miranda Derrick and her husband James Derrick, 7M, and Shinn denied the allegations and called the Wilkings’ claims the result of a family disagreement.
“Miranda Derrick is a successful businesswoman, loving wife and daughter who cares deeply about her family,” the rep said in a statement provided to The Daily Beast. “While recent portrayals by Dr. Robert Shinn and 7M Films have been extremely offensive and riddled with inaccuracies, these false claims will not deter 7M from supporting Miranda in whatever endeavors she chooses to pursue next.”
In response to her family’s Instagram video, Derrick posted a lengthy video on TikTok, telling fans that the reason she wasn’t speaking to her family was because of personal disagreements, not because of her involvement in 7M .
“I can say that everyone in my leadership group talks and communicates with their families,” Derrick wrote. “It’s just MY unique situation where I don’t talk to my family as often as I used to because they haven’t been supportive of the decisions I’ve made.”
She added that her family “did not respect” her decision to move in with James and that she did not attend her grandfather’s funeral in Michigan – a decision her family cited as a concern in their video – because she was afraid she “would be held captive” and she “didn’t feel safe” with her father.
Where is Miranda Derrick now?
According to Derek Doneen, the director of “Dancing for the Devil,” Derrick still works with 7M.
The filmmaker also claims that Derrick is aware that her parents participated in the Netflix project and that she continues to maintain a relationship with them.
However, Doneen says, “it’s not the place either of us would like it to be.”
“I hope Miranda watches this and sees the genuine love and desperation of her family,” Doneen added.
Miranda Derrick attended her younger sister’s wedding on May 24, 2024 and wrote, “I had a great time at my sister’s wedding. »
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