Death of the Pastor’s Wife
What’s it rated? TV-MA
When? 2026
Where’s it showing? Netflix
Mica, 13, met John Paul (JP), 28, when her family started attending Solid Rock Church. She was devout and eager to participate in her new community with JP. While Mica went on to marry her high school sweetheart, Jeremey, she continued to work closely with JP as his assistant. It soon became clear the two didn’t merely have a working relationship. Both their marriages fell apart as their affair became evident.
What follows is red flag after red flag of coercive control by JP, and by cutting in parts of his own sermons, we see that his belief in wifely submissiveness is not just biblically required, but an act of true faith.
He’s incredibly gross, a man using the guise of God to assert control over Mica and his church. While Mica’s death was officially ruled a suicide, the how and why she was driven to such a sad end falls solely on her abuser and husband.
Get ready to be infuriated. I yelled, “What is wrong with this man?” several times throughout the series.
As someone who grew up in a toxic religious culture, it’s maddening how pedestrian this kind of abuse becomes in those communities. (three 43-to-48-min. episodes)
—Anna Starkey
This article appears in September 24 – October 1, 2026.
