“Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” is a docuseries on Hulu about Ruby Franke, who is the mother of six children and had a big social media following from 2015-2022. The Franke family’s YouTube channel was called “8 Passengers” and was run by the mother, Ruby Franke. The YouTube channel consisted of vlogs from special occasions and everyday life and had over 2.5 million subscribers.  

They were a devout Mormon family that lived in Springville, Utah. In 2023, Franke was charged with child abuse alongside her friend and business partner Jodi Hildebrandt. They starved, duct-taped and isolated the children from each other and the outside world. The two will serve up to 60 years in prison.  

“Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” aired on Hulu in February of 2025. The show was highly talked about on social media and anything from interviews, old footage or new stories about Franke were being brought to light.

 A popular video on TikTok that got 8.1 million views was a compilation of the worst moments of Franke with her oldest son, Chad. A video of Franke being sentenced in court got over 400,000 likes. Franke’s two oldest children are now active on social media, trying to bring awareness and raise support against family vloggers.   

Many shows about Mormons have been produced and released to the public, and most of them represent Mormonism to the media in a similar way. The characters practicing Mormonism are featured in this perfect religious lifestyle from the outside, with many dark secrets within their personal lives.  

Numerous individuals featured in these films and shows established themselves in the Mormon religion, and their practice influences the way they behave. “Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” is heavily surrounded by the Mormon religion because much of Franke’s behavior was in support of her religion and its practices.  

This is just one of the many shows and films highlighting Mormonism; others include “Escaping Polygamy,” “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” “Sister Wives” and “Under the Banner of Heaven.”  

Mickey Randle with Georgia State University researched Mormon representation in the media and found that not many producers do research on the religion before releasing it to the public. Anti-Mormon films like Wagon Master, released in the 1950s, represented inaccurate philosophy and dress codes. 

Now, of course, that is a movie with actors and directors. What about reality TV shows like the many listed above? Does the media paint them in this light as unhinged, devious and stringent, or are they portraying themselves in that way? It seems much harder for producers and filmmakers to make Mormons appear in a certain way in the media when it is a documentary-style film or show like “The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke.” However, it is not impossible and often is manipulated by the media. 

Hayden Campbell grew up in the Mormon church and decided to step away when he turned 18-years-old. Campbell agrees that Mormons can be represented negatively in the media.  

“I think it’s represented in a more negative light compared to other religions… I think the things they do are a little more far-fetched than the things you see in Christianity,” Campbell said.

Campbell thinks that some of the representation is correct, but their religion should not get so much judgment for practicing their beliefs. 

 “They definitely have some funky beliefs. I mean it basically begins with Joseph Smith essentially, just some guy and he ended up being a polygamist and all this. So to an extent, I think it’s correct,” Campbell said. “At the end of the day, that’s someone else’s beliefs so it’s not like it’s really fair to judge someone else’s beliefs.” 

The Mormon church posted a short article called, “Commentary: When Entertainment Media Distorts Faith,” in August of 2024, speaking about the representation their religion has seen in the media regarding “The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke.” 

“While this is not new, a number of recent productions depict lifestyles and practices blatantly inconsistent with the teachings of the Church. Others irresponsibly mischaracterize the safety and conduct of our volunteer missionaries. We understand the fascination some in the media have with the Church, but regret that portrayals often rely on sensationalism and inaccuracies that do not fairly and fully reflect the lives of our Church members or the sacred beliefs that they hold dear,”  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Even though the LDS church did speak up about their representation in the media, they did not address the religious abuse that Franke committed.  

“I think they should’ve come out and condoned those actions and said like, we’re not about that,” Campbell said.  

Patrick Teahan is a therapist for child abuse and focuses specifically on religious abuse. Teahan has a YouTube channel where he addresses this type of abuse. In his episode called, “Religious Abuse and Cults – Childhood Trauma.” Teahan put Mormonism in the list with other religious cults or abusive groups like Scientology, Jehovah’s Witness, the KKK, West Barrow Baptist Church, and The People’s Temple.  

He also defines how to notice religious abuse within a church or family. That can look like “being separated from the outside group to the membership,” sharing private info with others or using your kids as an example of what not to do, setting the bar impossibly high, the teaching of “root out the devil in yourself and your friends,” and the mindset of “God will heal the child once the child accepted God more,” Teahan said.  

All of these are how Franke portrayed herself through the media and her religion.   

 Ruby Franke’s husband, Kevin Franke, was interviewed for, “The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke,” and said that Franke wanted to be a religious figure that other mothers could look up to and see that she led a perfect family like a well-run factory. It was known that the Frankes were a devout Mormon family because it was talked about often on their YouTube channel. There is a scene in the show that first appeared on their YouTube channel where Franke has the camera on a young man and asks him to talk about the decision he made that day. The young man tells on camera that because of Ruby Franke, he is now a member of the Latter-Day Saints. Franke then gives him a hug and cries. It is evident that she felt strongly about her beliefs and had an evangelistic heart. 

 In episode three Kevin Franke talks about how his wife truly thought that she was sent from God to fulfill his work. It appears in the show that Franke was heavily influenced by Hildebrandt who was a Mormon counselor and eventually became Franke’s business partner and friend.    

Franke had a journal that she wrote in every day. In her journal, Franke writes about how she believed there was a demon inside her two youngest children, and as a mother, it is her job to get it out. She told her son that he would have to die before she gave up. 

“This is a case about religious extremism,” says Erin Alberty in her article, “The Religious Extremism of Ruby Franke and Jodi Hildebrandt,” for Axios Salt Lake City.  

Religion, as we know it, was the sole motivation behind Franke and Hildebrandt’s actions. Surpassing all morals and laws, their religion overshadowed all other opinions, even to the point of her children’s safety.  

Franke loved religion more than her own children. Another sign of religious abuse is “losing your parents to a religion,” Teahan said.  

According to Alberty, even after her sentencing of 4 to 60 years, Franke still said, “What’s a better example than to go to prison unjustly?”   

Franke may have had a similar upbringing in the church that made her feel she needed to act this way. 

 “In religious abuse there is often a physiological pathology in the leadership that makes them be vulnerable to that kind of control and manipulation due to their own childhood trauma,” Teahan said.  

 Teahan breaks down a system of religious abuse is the “aggressor + codependent” family system. This system is when one parent is emotionally and physically abusive and the other parent shuts down and does not challenge the other. This leads the kids to perfectionism, anxiety, and even substance abuse. 

 This is identical to the way the Franke family is portrayed in “The Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke” and how they represented themselves on their YouTube channel. Franke was the aggressor and Kevin Franke was the codependent.  

Individuals on social media believe Franke gained money and fame and it changed her. Franke wanted to be known as a perfect mom with a perfect family and that was how viewers saw her.  

Many individuals grew up watching the “8 Passengers” YouTube channel. People were devastated by the news because they loved this family and felt they were a part of it in a way, watching them for years and sharing their family memories. The reaction online brought up concerns of other family vloggers who have been watched for years. If Franke got away with it, anyone can. There is lots of talk online to investigate other family vloggers like “The Labrant Fam” and the “Bucket List Family.” People don’t want to see kids being abused at the mercy of their parents’ fame and wealth. For many people who grew up watching family vloggers, it is almost like a part of their childhood is lost when news like this comes out.   

This show sheds light on the harsh reality that children go through because of religious extremists like Ruby Franke and Jodi Hildebrandt. Franke’s beliefs influenced her to act in an inhuman way and abuse her children. It also brings awareness to the dangers of vlogging and not having rights for children’s safety and privacy online. The show reminded people that what you see online is not always right. There are signs of religious abuse within the family that individuals who watch YouTube should be aware of.  

The Mormon religion continues to be represented in the media as an unhealthy religion who makes their members strive for perfection. Until the church speaks about these issues and formally apologizes for the actions of their members, concerns will remain, and the media will continue to make Mormon religion appear how they want.