Adam Driver’s mother-in-law — Cynthia May — was revealed to have allegedly been a part of a NYC cult that “emotionally abused & pressured members to commit infidelity,” reports The Sun.
May, 67, — the mother of Driver’s wife, Joanne Tucker — allegedly taught classes for the Odyssey Study Group (OSG) which was allegedly founded by “Slaughterhouse Five” star Sharon Gans and her playwright husband Alex Horn and has a history of mental abuse, physical abuse, homophobia, racism and child abuse.
According to several former members of the cult, members of the group were asked to fork over $400 per month to attend “lectures” hosted by Gans as well as classes based on the work of two Russian philosophers who believed hard labor and suffering was the way to self-improvement.
“We would pretty much work around the clock the whole weekend for 48 hours and I was probably working 100 hours a week,” said survivor Don Raskopf. “After about six months of that, I learned I had a psychotic break just from the stress.”
Spencer Schneider — who married May under the instruction of Gans until 2009 — claimed the leader would force people to reveal their greatest insecurity or fear so others could verbally assault and berated them.
Schneider eventually divorced May and left the group after being there for 20 years.
“I have my doubts if she’s still involved,” said Schneider. “She might be, but she was also cut out from Sharon’s will several years ago, so she may have been on the outs.”
“And there are other things that make me think she’s not in it anymore,” he continued.
In June of 2021. the alleged cult bought a $925K upstate retreat where they allegedly forced work around the clock.
“They get members to do all the work,” claimed a source to the Post. “Long hours. No pay. Intense. People are taken there [Margaretville] without knowing where they’re going.”
In October of the same year, two women sued the group claiming that they worked as unpaid servants.
The duo joined the cult in 2005 when the group promised to “help improve their lives economically, physically and spiritually.”
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lori Sattler tossed the case when the women failed to sufficiently prove “they expected compensation from [OSG] at any time during their membership.”
The Post reached out to Driver for comment.
“[Driver and Tucker] have no involvement in it whatsoever. None,” stated Schneider. “I know Adam and Joanne very well, they’re my stepdaughter and son-in-law.”
“They have no involvement in it, [but] I think Joanne knows about Sharon, you know, she knows about that,” continued Schneider. “But they all have no involvement at all and they didn’t like Sharon, the kids.”
“They all hated her,” he added. “They all hated her.”