Duggar family reacts to Amazon's 'Shiny Happy People' docuseries

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are not living their finest moment after the release of the accusatory new docuseries 'Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets' on Amazon.

Fans of the show who watched the docuseries were shocked to learn the dark secrets the Duggar family hid behind their perfect-happy-family facade.

Among all the controversy, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar released a statement on their family's website duggarfamily.com, to share their thoughts on 'Shiny Happy People', which stars their second eldest daughter Jill (Duggar) Dillard.

Photo: Instagram@duggarfam

On June 1st, the Duggars published their statement in which they started off by saying, "The recent "documentary" that talks about our family is sad because in it we see the media and those with ill intentions hurting people we love."

Photo: screenshot 'Shiny Happy People'

Then Mr and Mrs Duggar go on to call the documentary "derogatory" writing, "This "documentary" paints so much and so many in a derogatory and sensationalized way because sadly that's the direction of entertainment these days."

Photo: Instagram@duggarfam

Jim Bob and Michelle then reflect on the roller coaster ride the family has experienced while being in the public eye, saying, "We have always believed that the best chance to repair damaged relationships, or to reconcile differences, is through love in a private setting."

Duggar cousin Amy King, also featured in 'Shiny Happy People', was obviously upset by her aunt and uncle's attempt to brush off the accusations made in the docuseries. Amy made a TikTok which she also shared on her Instagram page, calling Jim Bob and Michelle out.

Amy wrote a caption accompanying a video about the family's response saying, "Anyone notice what seems like to me… gaslighting? The "private settings" are what we are speaking up about!"

Photo: screenshot 'Shiny Happy People'

In the docuseries, Jill Duggar also spoke about how contact with her family has been limited and strained ever since she decided she wanted to do things differently than the rest of the family and speak up about how she'd been wronged.

Photo: screenshot 'Shiny Happy People'

In an attempt to smooth things over, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar finished their statement regarding 'Shiny Happy People' by saying, "We love every member of our family and will continue to do all we can to have a good relationship with each one. Through both the triumphs and the trials, we have clung to our faith all the more and discovered that through the love and grace of Jesus, we find strength, comfort, and purpose."

Photo: TLC

'Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets' is possibly the most explosive and shocking look at the Duggar family and their religion that the public has ever seen.

Photo: Facebook@christiantoday

The docuseries features some members of the well-known Duggar family, however, not in the reality-tv format that they are best known.

Photo: Instagram@duggarfam

The super-sized Duggar family became popular when TLC picked up on the family and gave them their own show titled '19 Kids & Counting.'

Fans loved to tune in and see how a family functioned with that many kids. The show also featured the family's strict religious beliefs, which were in line with the guidelines set by Bill Gothard's Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP).

However, the seemingly wholesome family's reality show '19 Kids & Counting' on TLC was cancelled when In Touch magazine released an article about Josh Duggar's sexual abuse scandal.

The family was quick to rebrand and make another deal with TLC to create another show featuring their adult children called, 'Counting On.'

Still, it too was cancelled after just a few seasons when the eldest son Josh Duggar was arrested for possessing illicit images of children.

Since the revelation of the Duggar family's dark secrets, people have been wondering what other skeletons are hiding in the closet.

Several of the older children, such as Jill Duggar Dillard and Jinger Duggar Vuolo, have begun to speak out about their family, so it was really just a matter of time before a revealing docuseries was unveiled.

People magazine was the first to report on this "explosive" new limited series. The media outlet stated that "'Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets,' aims to go beneath the surface as it explores the wholesome family's troubling ties to a radical religious organization, the Institute in Basic Life Principles."

Photo: Screenshot, YouTube

According to People, the creators of the docuseries hope to expose Bill Gothard's Institute in Basic Life Principles, which some have equated to a cult.

The creators of 'Shiny Happy People' told People, they hoped to show how IBLP "negatively impacted — the once-beloved TLC brood, which has since experienced a series of controversial scandals."

Photo: Screenshot, TLC

In the trailer for the docuseries, a man claims: "World domination was the goal," regarding the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), and a woman declares, "The IBLP teachings aren't Christianity. They're something entirely different."

Jill Duggar Dillard and her husband, Derick Dillard, along with her cousin Amy (Duggar) King, participated in the docuseries and shared their truth.

Photo: Instagram@amyrachelleking

In the docuseries Jill Duggar Dillard says, "There's a story that's going to be told. And I would rather be the one telling it."

Jill, age 32, goes on to reflect on how long her family was involved with Bill Gothard's organization saying, "We were part of IBLP as early as I can remember."

Photo: Instagram@jingervuolo

It is clear that in 'Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets,' the producers hope to expose the problems with Bill Gothard's organization.

Photo: Screenshot, YouTube, The Cult Next Door film

Another man in the documentary even states that IBLP "turned every father into a cult leader and every home into an island."

Photo: YouTube, TLC

Several people involved with the Institute in Basic Life Principles were interviewed for the docuseries, apart from Jill Duggar Dillard and Amy King. They may not be as famous as the Duggars but they were just as harmed by the teachings of Gothard.

One woman said that "the institute raises little predators," and another says that being in the organization felt a bit like being in 'Handmaid's Tale.'

Despite the link to the Duggar family, the creators of the docuseries told People magazine, "This is much bigger than the Duggars."

If you are fascinated by cults and fundamentalist religious groups, you probably don't want to miss 'Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets.' The series is available on Amazon Prime Video.