‘Pray Away’ has dropped their first trailer, a month away from its official release on Netflix.
Pray Away is a documentary about five Evangelical Christian leaders of the Exodus International organisation. In particular, it focuses on their contribution to the rise of gay conversion therapy, making claims that people could “pray away” their homosexual tendencies and become straight.
However, following the group’s disbandment, the leaders have all come out as part of the LGBTQ+ community. They speak in the documentary about how the continued practice of conversion therapy is immoral and has brought about lasting trauma upon vulnerable individuals and the youth.
The trailer features a former member talking about how they promoted an idealised version of life, wherein “gay people could be saved” and accepted into the church. Another cries out about how he longed to love and be loved by another man, all while preaching anti-gay propaganda and the positives of conversion therapy.
One former member of the group said of their experiences,
“A voice inside me said, ‘How can you do this to your own people?’
“I ached to be loved and to love a man.”
The movie was originally set to premiere at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival. However, the pandemic has left its screening for this year. It is directed by Kristine Stolakis and has executive producers Ryan Murphy and Jason Blum.
The film is set to release on Netflix on August 3. Watch the trailer below!
