Limited Series – The Synanon Fix: Did the Cure Become a Cult?

Play trailer

Limited Series – The Synanon Fix: Did the Cure Become a Cult?

Apr 2024

Documentary

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

Tomatometer

3 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

The expansion and collapse of the Synanon organization, from its inception as a drug rehabilitation program to its descent into a cult, as told by those who lived through it.

Watch on HBO Max

Stream Now

Brian Tallerico

RogerEbert.com

04/04/2024

2.5/4

There’s something powerful about the sheer bulk of the hard-to-believe stories of a group that felt problematic from the beginning.

Go to Full Review

Marty Brown

Common Sense Media

04/17/2024

There may be value in viewers gaining an understanding how cults work, but it feels like the series crosses the line from entertainment to exploitation.

Go to Full Review

Joel Keller

Decider

04/03/2024

While we didn’t see a lot in The Synanon Fix that we didn’t see in previous Synanon-centric docuseries, the whole phenomenon of Synanon is just so fascinating to watch that we didn’t mind exploring it again...

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Taj M

04/23/2024

It was interesting to learn this story, but the documentary itself felt rather anticlimactic.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Nancy Abraham

Executive Producer

Mark Bailey

Executive Producer

Lisa Heller

Executive Producer

Rory Kennedy

Executive Producer

Mark Bailey

Writer

Keven McAlester

Writer

Episode 1

Aired Apr 1, 2024

Here Come the Dopefiends

Recovering alcoholic Charles Dederich opens a drug rehabilitation program; Synanon, as he names it, soon attracts celebrities and non-addicts who donate their time and wealth; the community grows into a movement that expands across the country.

Details

Episode 2

Aired Apr 8, 2024

A War on Convention

Chuck establishes "The Synanon Religion" and maintains their tax-exempt status; Chuck becomes increasingly authoritative and dictatorial; many members find themselves weighing the benefits and costs of the choices they're forced to make.

Details

Episode 3

Aired Apr 15, 2024

What in the Hell Is Happening?

Chuck's behavior becomes more belligerent and abusive; he forms a military-like boot camp for delinquent children where corporal punishment abounds; TIME Magazine publishes "Swinging at Synanon" and Chuck sues for $76 million as his paranoia grows.

Details

Episode 4

Aired Apr 22, 2024

Strap Yourself to the Mast

In 1977, the Los Angeles Times reports on the nine-day abduction of Frances Winn by Synanon; Chuck spends $62,000 on guns and ammunition; sentenced to five years probation, Chuck loses everything and dies in a nursing home.

Details

Telemarketers

96%

91%

Telemarketers

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Telemarketers

Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God

100%

68%

Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God

Hostages

100%

73%

Hostages

Watchlist

Chimp Crazy

86%

88%

Chimp Crazy

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Chimp Crazy

Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos

100%

93%

Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Director: Rory Kennedy
Executive Producer: Nancy Abraham, Mark Bailey, Lisa Heller, Rory Kennedy
Screenwriter: Mark Bailey, Keven McAlester, Jeff Swimmer
Network: HBO
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date: Apr 1, 2024