Attend church, be kind to those closest to you and maintain status. These are all things the women of “The Hunting Wives” seem to believe; however, it seems honesty, openness and not killing didn’t make the list. The Netflix series, “The Hunting Wives,” was released on July 21 and left viewers speechless.
The characters in the show seem to maintain the idea that if they hide what’s real, it doesn’t matter. A few women of the show have sexual relationships with each other in private because, of course, publicly it's frowned upon. They also hunt animals for fun, while eventually hunting each other.
The show is based on the novel by May Cobb and follows a group of Texans who go to church, hunt, discuss immigration and hurt each other emotionally in private. The show exposes and pokes fun at the hypocritical nature held by the far right. This is achieved through each character’s dark secrets and terrible actions while hiding behind a smile, a drink and attending church. This show isn’t a depiction of every conservative person, and is a comical, intense exaggeration; however, it speaks truth on certain levels.
Margo is potentially one of the most complex characters and is the wife of Jed, a man running for governor of Texas. Jed treats Margo as another person to boost his appearance. Having the perfect wife, he seems to think, boosts his campaign and this may add pressure to her. It is all about appearance in this conservative political world of Texas.
Margo comes from a past she wishes to keep buried and continues to do regrettable things, even sleeping with her friend’s son. Margo also holds multiple lesbian love affairs close to her heart, and we find later in the season that she has even had an abortion. All of this happens while she is speaking against abortion and telling one of her lesbian lovers that no one can find out about them. She continues to keep her mask of perfection on at all times and even tells her friends to sign NDAs. We wind up seeing just how far her fakeness and the need to maintain the perfect Christian, Texan image takes her. Margo demonstrates what pressure to be something that one is not, does to a person.
Jill, the pastor’s wife, is an extreme Christian who preaches abstinence and pro-life beliefs. She goes to church and lectures her son and his girlfriend; however, she is hateful to his girlfriend and winds up being someone capable of killing another human. The same goes for a few of these women in the show. They attend church and speak of life and love, but are hateful and in a state of delusion that rests in money and status. This sense of fakery demonstrates what makes this show one that pokes fun at the extreme right and its stereotypes. In so many cases, they preach love until it's different or not religion-based.
Sophie demonstrates what this environment does to a person. She came from the Northeast as an outsider, and after growing close to these people, she seems to wind up devolving into the type of person these self-infatuated women are, in my opinion. She begins drinking again, cheats on her husband and even repeats one of the largest regrets of her past.
Another reason it seems to poke fun at the deep conservatism of Texas is the cast. Brittany Snow, who plays Sophie, starred in a pro-choice short film right before the 2024 election. It is highly doubtful that Snow would star in a seriously conservative film meant to support the far right or pro-life. This further emphasizes its way of mocking extreme conservatism.
Overall, this show makes fun of uber-conservatives through its sarcastic humor, hunting mentality and its selfish characters. Regardless of whether the intent behind this story was to do this, it still does, and in a wonderful way. None of the women really practice what they preach and hurt others to keep face. They bury awful actions so deep they'd kill to hide what’s real. When one conserves who they really are, it can push them over the edge. Hypocrisy runs deep and can cost lives.
Kyra Dapore is a senior studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk more about it? Let Kyra know by emailing her at kd364521@ohio.edu.
