Hulu Will Air Docu-Series About Larry Ray's Sarah Lawrence Sex Cult

YONKERS, NY — The story of Sarah Lawrence sex cult leader Larry Ray, who sexually abused, extorted and trafficked his daughter's college roommates, will be the subject of an upcoming three-part documentary series.

Hulu announced that it will be premiering its original series, "Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence," on February 9.

Ray gained international attention after he was convicted following a Manhattan trial during which jurors heard weeks of testimony from witnesses who detailed his psychological manipulation of the young people he first met at Sarah Lawrence, starting in 2010. The jury returned guilty verdicts on each of 15 counts after deliberating for just four hours.

Lawrence Grecco, aka Larry Ray, stood accused of sex trafficking, forced labor and extortion.

Ray forced one of the students to engage in commercial sex acts to pay damages to him that she did not actually owe.

According to the victim's testimony, beginning when she was just a college student, she was groomed by Ray and he collected sexually explicit photos and other personal information which he then used to coerce her into prostitution. He also used physical violence, tying her to a chair, placing a plastic bag over her head and nearly suffocating her.

"Twelve years ago, Larry Ray moved into his daughter’s dorm room at Sarah Lawrence College," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said after Ray was convicted of all charges for his part in the exploitation of his daughter's friends. "And when he got there, he met a group of friends who had their whole lives ahead of them. For the next decade, he used violence, threats, and psychological abuse to try to control and destroy their lives. He exploited them. He terrorized them. He tortured them. Let me be very clear. Larry Ray is a predator. An evil man who did evil things."

According to Hulu, the filmmakers had unprecedented access, with firsthand interviews with Larry Ray's victims. The series incorporates personal audio tapes and video recordings to tell the story of his 10-year influence over the group of students. The show follows the story from the cult's 2010 origins on the Sarah Lawrence campus until its recent end, when some of the last members find their own paths to survival.

SEE ALSO:

• Grad Admits Role As 'Lieutenant' In Sarah Lawrence Sex Cult: Report
• Westchester Sex Cult Client List Accidentally Released: Report
• Dad Guilty In Federal Sarah Lawrence 'Sex Cult' Exploitation Case
• Sarah Lawrence 'Sex Cult' Federal Trial Starts
• Bail Denied In Sarah Lawrence Student Sex Trafficking Case
• Man Accused Of Sex Trafficking, Extorting Sarah Lawrence Students

Academy Award-nominated director Zach Heinzerling spoke with Vulture about the docu-series.

"Daniel Levin, who was one of the survivors of Larry Ray and one of the main sources for the article, approached me about making a documentary," Heinzerling said in an interview with Vulture. "He said, 'I wanna make something that the survivors will be able to watch and see themselves in.'"

Heinzerling told the magazine that during filming, he saw the process of one survivor "deciphering which memories were Larry’s and which were her own and really build her identity back."

"You don’t often get to see someone heal from this kind of abuse [onscreen]," Heinzerling told Vulture. "It showed a level of strength and courage in someone to rid themselves of that shame and embarrassment that they might have felt in the aftermath of this and begin a process of healing."

"I went to a small liberal-arts college," the director said. "I had a similar group of artistic-minded friends. And so I felt like, this could be me."

"You have a group of progressive-minded, quote, unquote 'liberal' students who are in an environment where they’re being told to find themselves," Heinzerling said. "And in comes this kind of heteronormative, masculine, conservative person who makes very clear black-and-white decisions about these students’ lives and eases all these anxieties. I think it’s interesting to see that also in the context of a small liberal-arts college, where you don’t really associate a Trump type of personality being attractive, but yet he was to these really bright young students."

Heinzerling told Vulture he wants the doc to "show the real process enacted by Larry over the course of many years" and "allow people to see themselves in that experience."

"In this case, it’s a psychological prison," he explained. "When you see videos of these students admitting to these bizarre crimes, it’s hard to know what to make of it. I think the goal is to understand how it happened and to sympathize with the survivors and understand their story in a deeper way — and hopefully learn something about yourself and society."

You can watch the trailer below: