A documentary about the sex scandal that helped lead to the downfall of former Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. launched on Hulu Tuesday.
God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty includes interviews with Giancarlo Granda (the young man who was swept up in the scandal), journalist Megan K. Stack, Matthew Sutton of Washington State University, Anthea Butler of the University of Pennsylvania, Dustin Wahl of Save 71, Randall Balmer of Dartmouth and actor/comedian Tom Arnold, who befriended Granda. The film is rated TV-MA for language and sexual content.
Falwell resigned in August 2020.
A Hulu news release says Granda, "former pool attendant at the Fontainebleau Hotel, shares the intimate details of his 7-year relationship with a charming older woman, Becki Falwell, and her husband, the Evangelical Trump stalwart Jerry Favell Jr."
Billy Corben directed it.
"[Granda] visited them in New York, in the Bahamas, on campus at Liberty University. He attended a convocation," Corben told NPR. "... This is not a documentary about Christians and Christianity. This is about people who exploit Christians and Christianity for power and profit."
The film criticizes the Falwells but also Republican leaders and – toward the end of the film – the pro-life movement.
"Spend your money, go party, have consensual, safe sex – that's great," Corben said. "The issue is the hypocrisy. They are punishing people, and they are threatening their financial security because there are fines for violating the Liberty way. They are threatening their academic future. They ruined people's lives for holding them to a standard that the Falwells themselves never lived up to."
Earlier this year, Vanity Fair published an interview with the Falwells. They deny many of Granda's allegations.
"We're together more than any couple you will ever meet in your life," Becki Falwell told the publication, referencing her husband. "He forgave me, and that's what Jesus teaches, forgiveness."
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Alex Wong/Staff
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
