Women allege coercion and harm inside Las Vegas body-positivity community Pearadise

Stefan Wilhelmy claims he founded "Pearadise" with the genuine aim of championing body positivity for plus-sized women. However, some former members have come forward to paint a far more troubling picture of life inside the group — and their accounts are now at the centre of a new television docuseries.

Inside the ID docuseries

Big Girls Wanted: Escaping Pearadise, a multi-part docuseries on Investigation Discovery, premiered on Wednesday at 8 pm Eastern. The series examines the rise and fall of Pearadise, the online community that Wilhelmy built and operated from his home in Las Vegas.

According to a press release from ID: "In 2020, a social media-driven community known as 'Pearadise' began gaining attention online, positioning itself as a space dedicated to sisterhood and body positivity for plus-size women. Based out of a Las Vegas mansion and amplified through a growing digital presence, the collective quickly attracted a devoted following — at one point, it grew to nearly 250,000 followers on TikTok alone."

Allegations of coercion and harm

The docuseries features interviews with Wilhelmy himself, as well as several women who were involved with Pearadise at various points. The programme explores allegations of coercion and claims that members were pressured to gain weight, even at serious cost to their physical wellbeing.

In a clip from the series shared with PEOPLE, Wilhelmy maintains that his motivations were always rooted in positivity.

"My whole intention with 'Pearadise' was just to bring positivity. I can confidently say that the effect that it has had on so many people is priceless."

Yet many of those who once formed part of the community take a markedly different view.

From sisterhood to scrutiny

The ID press release describes how the collective's public-facing image gradually gave way to something altogether more complex: "the docuseries provides context around how a highly visible, body-positive collective became the subject of growing scrutiny and spiralled into a complicated web of dark allegations."