Coronation Street cult leader actor speaks about drawing on personal experience

Emrhys Cooper who plays a cult leader in Coronation Street tells ITV News Entertainment Reporter Rishi Davda, how his parents got caught up in a similar scheme in real life

They can be charming but conniving, gracious yet greedy. Cult leaders are experts at worming their way into people’s minds and bank accounts.

Cults vary in the messaging they convey and the rules they impose, many are based around the idea of wellness but can have more sinister undertones.

For the past few months, Coronation Street viewers have been unnerved by a storyline around a well-being cult called ‘The Institute’, led by character Rowan Cunliffe.

Rowan is played by Emrhys Cooper, who has a personal connection to cult culture. His mum and dad were drawn into one while living in Totnes, Devon.

Thinking back to that time, Emrhys says that "the cult that my parents were a part of, over 1.3 million people went through that cult and the training, they are in 23 countries".

"There were numerous Rowan characters in and out of my household. I thought it was normal growing up."

"These cults often disguise their marketing with fitness and wellness and self-development, but as they went up the levels it got a bit more sinister and darker."

Rowan Cuncliffe plays a pivotal role in the latest Coronation Street storyline

Cults are often portrayed on TV as practitioners of illegal activity or comical collectives, but their presence in the UK is both significant and impactful.

There are estimated to be around 2,000 cults in the country at any one time. A group held together by a shared commitment to a leader or ideology.

Members are often promised the answers to all of life’s questions and in return, they must be fully devoted to the cause.

Sometimes they hand over large sums of money, are forced to break ties with their families and follow counterintuitive rules.

Being members of a cult had life-altering effects on Emrhys and his family.

"What happened to my mother was very sad. She had high blood pressure and she listened to a holistic, cult-like figure in her local town. He advised her to stop taking her prescription, she then had a minor heart attack," he said.

"She swore she would continue with her prescription and she didn’t and four years later she had a very severe stroke. Now she in a nursing home and she’s not mentally with us any more. This is due to these conspiracies."

Emrhys has already written and directed a film informed by his childhood experiences, called The Shuroo Process.

After booking the job on Coronation Street, he asked more questions of his family to help prepare.

He says: "It’s brought me and my father closer together. It’s been quite a healing experience for both of us and getting to share this storyline to a large audience will hopefully warn and create conversation.

"Cults look different to how they did 30 years ago, now were are being bombarded with social media, it is hard to dissect the truth."

The Shuroo Process focuses on how a cult can lure people in

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Cults can see susceptible and vulnerable individuals brainwashed into accepting an alternative reality, forced to alienate themselves from those close to them and hand over large sums of money to a leader, all for the good of the cause.

Coronation Street is shining a light on the charismatic individuals who have cruel intentions.

If you need help or advice surrounding cults, you can find details here.

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