"Pauline" A Disney+ Show Sparking Controversy

So, somehow my email has been subscribed to random email lists over the last few years, and while I've gradually attempted to delete myself from these groups, I occasionally still receive a surprise email in my inbox. Sometimes, they're so odd I can't help but think my phone has been listening in on our class discussions...

Here's the email I got in my inbox on March 16th:

Hi friend, I thought you or a friend might want to know about this:

I previously wrote to you with great concern about Pauline, a satanic series on the Disney+ platform, which primarily caters to children. This show follows the story of Pauline, a teenage girl who becomes pregnant after a one-night encounter with Satan. Disturbingly, the series delves into a twisted romantic relationship between the teenager and the devil. While this series is set to release in Germany in May, it does not yet have a confirmed release date in the United States. Our goal is to gather 20,000 signatures to present to Disney in an effort to prevent this show from being released to our children. We can still stop this. We are nearing our target, but time is running out. Would you kindly lend your support by adding your signature today? Together, we can strive to put a stop to this series before it's too late. STOP PAULINE Thank you for protecting our children and grandchildren. Sincerely, Ted Baehr, Chairman and Founder of Movieguide® P.S. Disney+ is set to release Pauline, a satanic love story featuring an 18-year-old girl impregnated by the devil. We can't let this twisted and disturbing content corrupt our children. Sign the petition today!

This was just too perfect. Down the rabbit hole we go!

The video gives a great summary, but the gist is that Disney+ in Germany green-lit an adult TV series titled Pauline which follows a young girl (Sira-Anna Faal) who accidentally has a one-night stand with Lukas (Ludger Bökelmann) who turns out to be the devil. The result of their evening together is Pauline getting pregnant and obtaining supernatural powers. Pauline must navigate her new life, her powers, her romantic relationship with Satan himself, and possibly face the end of the world. Honestly, sounds interesting to me, but people are up in arms about it. Per the email above, the signature list has already surpassed the 20,000 goal.

Cast and creators of Pauline

The opposition is mostly coming from Christian groups who believe Disney as a company is heading down the unredeemable path of devil worship. They claim they want to protect their children, and that releasing the German title in America would be overtly inappropriate on the platform. But is it really? I think Jeremy Hanna put it best:

"While the subject matter is more mature than most titles released under the Disney banner, this honestly doesn’t sound too different from a standard fairy tale. A human falling in love with a mythical creature/monster is the exact plot of family-friendly classics like The Little Mermaid (1989, 2023) and Beauty and the Beast (1991, 2017)."

I have to agree with that statement. After all, what's Satan if not another monster worthy of redemption? 

The concept of the show and its controversies are interesting for a few reasons:

1. It's relatively in line with the work we've done thus far in class discussing the misogynistic views of men like Heinrich Kramer and Malleus Maleficarum. He closely linked witchcraft with being overly sexual, especially when it came to women interacting with the Devil. "Witchcraft in the Malleus thus emerges as a phenomenon that is explicitly gendered and sexual. It arises from the insatiable sexual appetites of women; sexual intercourse with her master is the sign of a witch’s servitude, and increasing the devil’s progeny is one of her chief goals," (The Malleus Maleficarum and the construction of witchcraft: Theology and popular belief  by Hans Peter Broedel, pg. 26). Pauline sleeping with Satan promotes her to being a witch (or at least possessing powers in some fashion), despite being a normal teenager before the fateful evening. And based on the description, she didn't engage in sexual activity knowing that her partner for the evening was the Devil, so I suppose she's an accidental witch.

2. In researching Pauline, I also discovered a branch of religion entitled "Pauline Christianity." This version of Christianity essentially believes that the disciple "Paul was a charlatan, an evangelical huckster who succeeded in twisting Jesus’ message of love into something Jesus himself would never recognize. It was Paul, not Jesus, who originated the “Christianity” of today." Pauline Christianity is widely not accepted and is noted as heresy by church leaders, so it's doubly fascinating that the main character shares its namesake. By definition then, Pauline herself goes against Jesus and is a member of the occult.

3. The strong anti-devil reaction from religious groups continues to demonstrate a trend we've seen in all genres of media concerning children. Although Pauline is clearly targeted toward adults, there's no real boundary to what Disney+ provides in terms of entertainment, and parents are concerned about demonic corruption. Disney is supposed to be for kids, right? (Minus Marvel, Star Wars, The Simpsons... see the problem?) Censorship follows. It's a frightening pattern. Allowing certain (conservative?) groups to predetermine the media available to massive populations is scarier than a show including sex and Satan. 

The show is apparently scheduled to be released in Germany in late spring, and it's unclear when or if it will ever air here in the States. I can't deny my curiosity though. I'm interested in what the details of this plot truly are, and how the show will translate across countries and cultures. Oddly, the most visceral responses to the show aren't even coming from people in Germany, but from residents of the United States who fear the potential release of Pauline here.

I guess we'll find out soon enough, but if you're looking for devilish shows in the meantime, I personally recommend Good Omens on Amazon Prime or Lucifer on Netflix. Both are delightfully demonic and quite funny.