After more than two years of waiting, part II of HBO Max's critically acclaimed docuseries, The Vow is finally here.
The second part of the docuseries focuses on the trials of Raniere's closest allies, Allison Mack, Nancy Salzman, Kathy Russell, Lauren Salzman and Claire Bronfman, who faced charges of identity theft, extortion, forced labor, sex trafficking, money laundering, wire fraud, and obstruction of justice alongside NXIVM founder Keith Raniere.
Mack was named in court documents as one of the most powerful figures in NXIVM and her arrest was detailed in Episode 1 of The Vow, Part 2. But where is she now?
Who is Allison Mack?
Allison Mack is a former American actress and convicted criminal.
In the acting world, Mack is best known for her role as Chloe Sullivan in Smallville and Amanda in the FX comedy Wilfred.
Mack starred in Smallville from 2001 to 2011 and even had her own miniseries Smallville: Chloe Chronicles and Smallville: Vengeance Chronicles.
Her other credits include 7th Heaven, Camp Nowhere and Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves.
She was a member of NXIVM, a now-defunct multi-level marketing company founded by Keith Raniere and Nancy Salzman in 1998. It was known for its motivational personal development seminars. However, in the 2000s and 2010s reports began to surface of Raniere running NXIVM as a cult alongside accusations of sexual abuse and unethical practices within the organization.
Mack joined NXIVM in 2006 after being introduced to Jness, a women's group within NXIVM. She worked her way up through the organization and was the co-creator of The Source, an NXIVM program that recruited actors.
During her time as an NXIVM member, Mack was also a member of DOS, a secret sect created by Raniere. DOS stood for "Dominus Obsequious Sororium," which loosely translates to "lord over the obedient female companions." DOS was advertised as a female empowerment group but according to prosecutors, women were recruited for Raniere's gratification and were known as "slaves."
Female members of DOS were also instructed to provide "collateral" to DOS leaders, such as personal information, nude photographs, and rights to assets, which could be used against them if they told anyone of DOS's existence.
Members were also controlled by Raniere and its leaders through extremely strict diets and were subject to corporal punishment.
As seen in The Vow on HBO and HBO Max, some women were also branded with Raniere's initials. Former NXIVM member Sarah Edmondson told The New York Times in 2018 that a branding initiation ceremony took place at Mack's house under her supervision.
On April 20, 2018, Mack was arrested on charges of sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and forced labor conspiracy.
The official indictment for her arrest alleges she recruited women to provide sex to Raniere under false pretenses they were joining a women's group. Prosecutors also alleged Mack received financial benefits from Raniere for her work.
The indictment reads: "Other than Raniere, all members of DOS were women. Mack is one of the women on the first level of the pyramid immediately below Raniere.
"Mack and other DOS masters recruited DOS slaves by telling them that they were joining a women-only organization that would empower them and eradicates purported weaknesses that the Nxivm curriculum taught were common in women. Mack and other DOS masters concealed Raniere's status at the top of the pyramid from new recruits."
It continues: "According to court filings, Mack directly or implicitly required her slaves, including Jane Does 1 and 2, as identified in the Indictment, to engage in sexual activity with Raniere. In exchange for this, Mack received financial and other benefits from Raniere. Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 believed that if they did not participate in those activities with Raniere, their collateral would be released."
Mack was released from prison four days after her arrest on $5 million bail and held under house arrest at her parents home in California. She faced up to 15 years to life in prison if found guilty.
On April 8, 2019, Mack pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges. She also admitted to state law extortion and forced labor. She was sentenced to three years in prison and three years probation, alongside 1,000 hours of community service and a fine of $20,000.
Mack also cooperated with the prosecution of Raniere, detailing the inner workings of DOS. Crucially, she provided a recording of Raniere discussing the branding ceremony, proving he was the leader of DOS.
On June 19, 2019, Raniere was convicted of several sexual offenses, including:
- The sexual exploitation of a child
- Possession of child pornography
- Sex trafficking
- Attempted sex trafficking
- Identity theft
- Trafficking for labor
- Forced labor
- Conspiracy to alter records
- Sex trafficking conspiracy
- Forced labor conspiracy
- Racketeering conspiracy
- Wire fraud conspiracy
He was sentenced to 120 years in prison and fined $1.75 million.
Where is Allison Mack now?
Today, Mack is serving her three-year sentence at Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin in Dublin, California.
FCI Dublin is a low-security prison for female inmates. Notable past inmates at FIC Dublin include Lori Loughlin, Elizabeth Henriquez, and Felicity Huffman, who were all convicted in the 2019 college admissions scandal.
Mack began serving her sentence on September 13, 2021.
Through NXIVM, Mack met her former wife, Battlestar Galactica actress Nicki Clyne, who was also an NXIVM member. Mack filed for divorce in December 2020, People reported.
Newsweek reached out to Mack's representatives for comment.
The Vow, Part 2 airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.
About the writer
Molli Mitchell is a Senior SEO TV and Film Newsweek Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on ... Read more
