> At a Glance
> – Michael Woroniecki’s teachings spotlighted in The Cult Behind the Killer: The Andrea Yates Story on HBO Max
> – Docuseries claims his apocalyptic messages may have shaped Andrea Yates’s fatal decision
> – Woroniecki denies responsibility and continues U.S. preaching tours
> – Why it matters: Viewers are asking how fringe religious rhetoric intersects with mental-health crises
A 2026 HBO Max docuseries revisits the 2001 drowning deaths of five Yates children and points to traveling preacher Michael Woroniecki as an unseen influence on their mother, Andrea. The three-part production, The Cult Behind the Killer, premiered Jan. 6 and features interviews with former followers, Rusty Yates, and investigators.
The Woroniecki Message
Survivors say Woroniecki’s ministry, launched on college campuses in the 1980s, fixated on imminent judgment. Followers received pamphlets, tapes, and videos-some showing Woroniecki posing as Satan-warning that the world could end “in 46 minutes.”
- Children must be homeschooled to avoid satanic influence.
- Kids who die before age 12 allegedly bypass hell.
- “Unrighteous mothers” doom their offspring, he taught.
Rusty Yates introduced Andrea to these materials shortly after their 1993 marriage. David De La Isla, a former follower, claims Andrea replayed Woroniecki’s tapes the morning of the drownings.
Letters and Warnings
Andrea, diagnosed with postpartum depression and psychosis, spiraled after her fifth birth in late 2000. Rachel Woroniecki, the preacher’s wife, allegedly mailed a letter urging Andrea to “change” her children before it was “too late” and to ignore Rusty and “look to Jesus.”
Jail psychiatrist Melissa Ferguson testified that Andrea echoed Woroniecki-style rhetoric:
> “My children weren’t righteous… They were doomed to perish in the fires of hell.”
Legal and Personal Fallout
Both prosecution and defense raised Woroniecki’s influence during Andrea’s 2002 capital-murder trial. A copy of his newsletter, The Perilous Times, was entered as evidence, and Dr. Park Dietz cited pressure to follow the teachings as a factor in Andrea’s earlier suicide attempts.
Woroniecki told Good Morning America in March 2002 that blame is shared but not his:
> “I shared Jesus with them… I hold Rusty responsible but I also hold Andrea responsible.”
No civil or criminal liability has ever been attached to Woroniecki. Andrea’s conviction was overturned; in 2006 she was found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to a Texas psychiatric facility.
Where Is He Now?
Woroniecki, now preaching for nearly five decades, says he and his family have visited 60 countries. His website insists he is neither “a cult” nor “religious fanatic” and that critics spread “terrible lies.”
Key Takeaways
- The docuseries re-examines Woroniecki’s potential role but produces no legal smoking gun.
- Andrea’s mental illness remains the court-recognized driver of the tragedy.
- Woroniecki continues to preach, unimpeded, across the United States.
The documentary leaves audiences debating where persuasive preaching ends and personal accountability begins.
