Allison Mack Speaks Publicly for the First Time Since Serving Prison Sentence in NXIVM Case

Former Smallville actress Allison Mack remains one of Hollywood’s most shocking cautionary tales after her involvement with NXIVM, the self-help organization later exposed as a secretive cult. She was once a rising star known for her role as Chloe Sullivan on the hit Superman prequel. Mack’s fall from grace captured national attention as details emerged about her recruitment tactics and deep ties to NXIVM’s founder, Keith Raniere. Her story continues to fascinate audiences. Now, she’s speaking out publicly for the first time since her prison sentence.

Allison Mack recounted how she felt sorry for her family during sentencing for her NXIVM involvement

Actress Allison Mack is finally speaking out on the new seven-episode CBC podcast, Allison After NXIVM, following her two-year prison stint. Mack played a central role in the NXIVM cult. She became one of its most prominent recruiters, helping to lure women into a secret subgroup called DOS. Members were branded and coerced into serving leader Keith Raniere. In 2021, Mack received a three-year sentence in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges of racketeering and sex trafficking conspiracy related to her involvement in the organization. She began serving her sentence at a low-security facility in Dublin, California, and was released early in July 2023, after serving less than two years behind bars.

In June 2021, Mack was sentenced for her crimes. In the first episode of the CBC podcast released in November 2025, she recounted how it felt for her family to listen to what she’d done. “Oh, my God, my poor brother behind me, having to hear this about his sister,” Mack said. “My poor mom. I’m so sorry, you guys. It was more like, I can take it, but like f***, you guys, I’m so sorry. I think that was hard. I don’t see myself as innocent, and they were.”

Mack noted that she was able to use her celebrity status to push female NXIVM members to do what Raniere wanted.

“I think that I capitalized on the things I had,” she said on the podcast. “And so, the success I had as an actor, I think I did capitalize on that. And it was a power tool that I had to get people to do what I wanted.”

“I think that I was very effective in moving Keith’s vision forward,” Mack continued.

The ‘Smallville’ actress discussed how her co-star, Kristin Kreuk, introduced her to NXIVM

Kristin Kreuk, Allison Mack’s Smallville co-star, introduced Mack to NXIVM. Kreuk reportedly joined the organization in the mid-2000s to take part in its personal development seminars but left years before its criminal activities came to light. During that time, she encouraged Mack to attend a workshop, believing it to be a legitimate self-improvement program. However, while Kreuk distanced herself early on, Mack became deeply involved, rising through the ranks and ultimately helping lead NXIVM’s secretive inner circle. Kreuk later condemned the cult’s practices and expressed shock at how the program she once thought harmless had evolved into a manipulative and abusive operation.

In the first episode of Allison After NXIVM, Mack recalled Kreuk introducing her to NXIVM.

“‘It’s the science of joy; it’s the most amazing thing,'” Mack recalled Kreuk explaining to her. “‘It’s made everything so much better in my life. You’ve got to do this.'” Mack noted that NXIVM “was all” Kreuk “could talk about” at the time. “She was super excited about it.”

Mack later explained her first impression of Raniere.

“I didn’t think, ‘Whoa, he’s so hot.’ I thought, he’s an older, geeky dude,” she said. “… He just looked like a normal white dude.”

Allison Mack called herself ‘aggressive and abusive’

Allison Mack’s involvement in DOS, the secret subgroup within NXIVM, marked the darkest chapter of her story. Short for Dominus Obsequious Sororium, Latin for “Master Over Slave Women,” DOS operated as a covert pyramid of control, with Mack serving directly beneath Keith Raniere. She allegedly oversaw several “slaves,” enforcing strict obedience and demanding acts of submission, including starvation diets, late-night tasks, and the provision of damaging personal secrets as collateral. Mack also participated in and directed the branding of women with a symbol that secretly incorporated Raniere’s initials.

While speaking on the podcast, Mack called herself a “harsh monster” for her involvement in NXIVM.

“I was not kind, and I was aggressive and I was abusive,” Mack said, according to the Los Angeles Times. “I was harsh, and I was callous, and I was aggressive and forceful in ways that were painful for people. [I] did make people feel like they had no choice and was incredibly abusive to people, traumatic for people.”