Jim Bob And Michelle Duggar React To 'Derogatory,' 'Sensationalized' Docuseries Featuring Daughter Jill

Jim Bob Duggar and his wife Michelle Duggar have broken their silence on a new docuseries about their family and their controversial religion.

The Duggar patriarch and matriarch called out the new Prime Video docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets" directed by Julia Willoughby Nason and Olivia Crist, describing it as "derogatory and sensationalized."

"The recent 'documentary' that talks about our family is sad because in it we see the media and those with ill intentions hurting people we love," the couple wrote in a statement issued via their official website Friday. "Like other families, ours too has experienced the joys and heartbreaks of life, just in a very public format. This 'documentary' paints so much and so many in a derogatory and sensationalized way because sadly that's the direction of entertainment these days."

The former "19 Kids and Counting" stars continued by sharing what they believe is the best way to mend relationships.

"We have always believed that the best chance to repair damaged relationships, or to reconcile differences, is through love in a private setting," Jim Bob and Michelle added. "We love every member of our family and will continue to do all we can to have a good relationship with each one. Through both the triumphs and the trials we have clung to our faith all the more and discovered that through the love and grace of Jesus, we find strength, comfort, and purpose."

"Shiny Happy People" focuses on the Duggar family's past scandals, including Josh Duggar's child pornography conviction, as well as the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) — the strict religious credo emphasizing female submission and homeschooling that Jim Bob and Michelle adopted and passed onto their children.

Jim Bob and Michelle's daughter Jill Duggar Dillard, who had a public falling out with her parents, as well as Jill's husband Derick Dillard make appearances in the four-part limited series.

"I felt like if I said no, I am not obeying my parents and bad things are gonna happen to me," Jill, the only one of the Duggar kids to participate, said in the documentary, E! News reported. "IBLP and the teachings draw in people like my dad who want this control. It can foster this cult-like environment."

The docuseries also features Jim Bob and Michelle's niece Amy Duggar King, her husband Dillon King and Jim Bob's sister Deanna Jordan, according to People.

Jill and Derick previously talked about their strained relationship with her family in a YouTube Q&A in March 2021. She admitted at the time that they hadn't visited her family in years for their own peace of mind.

"We haven't actually been over there in a while, probably like a couple [of] years, other than once, like, to check the mail," Jill confessed. "[In] this season of life, we have to prioritize our mental, emotional health and all of that. Our threshold—we like to call it—is just a little bit lower in this season of life for us, with a lot going on in our own lives."

"Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets" premiered Friday on Amazon Prime.