Violent Death Parodies in Mormonism and ExMormonism — The INSANE Double Standard

A few years ago I released a video covering the infamous FAIR Mormon / “This Is The Show” Inglourious Basterds parody controversy—the one where a violent execution scene was used to depict John Dehlin being killed in a parody video posted by Kwaku El and Brad Whitbeck.At the time, my reaction felt straightforward. The imagery was disturbing, inappropriate, and wildly out of line. I said so clearly in my original critique, and I still stand by that assessment today.But recently, while reviewing archived TikTok-era content from Mormon Stories Podcast, I came across something that completely changed how I view the situation.In a now largely forgotten TikTok clip, a scene from Doctor Strange—the famous confrontation between Doctor Strange and Dormammu—was edited to depict “the Mormon Church” repeatedly killing various excommunicated or marginalized figures, including Bill Reel, Natasha Helfer, and Jeremy Runnells.When I saw it, I was honestly shocked.Because structurally and visually, it relies on the exact same type of symbolic violent imagery that caused such a massive backlash in the FAIR Mormon controversy.Yet the reactions couldn’t have been more different.In this video, I revisit the entire saga, play a clip from my original breakdown, and explain why I now believe there’s a serious double standard in how the ex-Mormon community responded.If we’re going to condemn violent imagery in religious discourse—and I think we absolutely should—then we have to apply that standard consistently, regardless of which side of the debate it comes from.This isn’t about defending FAIR Mormon or attacking Mormon Stories. It’s about examining principles, consistency, and credibility in the broader Mormon discourse space.Let’s talk about it.Please consider making a donation by joining our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/MormonNewsRoundup Email: [email protected] Website: https://mormonnewsroundup.org/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonnewsroundup Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormon_news_roundup/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093511869924 X: https://twitter.com/NewsMormon New episodes LIVE every Sunday and Monday nights at 9:30PM ESTPlease like and subscribe and hit the notifications bell. Remember remember, no unhallowed hand can stop this podcast from progressing!The Mormon News Roundup is NOT affilated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.