This past week, former actress Allison Mack plead guilty to sex trafficking conspiracy charges stemming from her involvement in the heavily-investigated organization known as NXVIM.
Mack – best known for portraying Chloe Sullivan on the WB and later CW Superman prequel series Smallville – was indicted in April 2018 on charges of sex trafficking, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, and conspiracy to commit forced labor. By changing her plea from not guilty to guilty, Allison could be facing up to 15 years in prison if convicted. The organization’s leader, Keith Raniere, stands by his plea of not guilty in his own case.
The Albany, N.Y.-based NXVIM had acted under the guise of a series of self-help programs focusing on female empowerment. In reality, according to the prosecution, this organization had a pyramid-like hierarchy with Raniere’s established sex cult within, branding these enslaved women in their pelvic area with his initials. Further, the number of women in this situation stands at 50 and order was maintained under threat of exploiting nude photographs and other compromising materials.
Mack, herself, stands accused of actively participating in Raniere’s cult, allegedly coercing two “slaves” into intercourse with the leader in exchange for financial compensation. There was even a point where she almost got fellow Smallville alum Kristen Kreuk involved in the organization. It was around this time when it was finally exposed and the true nature of Mack’s involvement revealed. She had spent the past year under house arrest, staying with her parents until she had entered a new plea of guilty. The revelation of what Allison had been up to as of late shocked both fans and former cast mates such as Michael Rosenbaum, who portrayed Lex Luthor for the first seven seasons of the show.
Mack had portrayed Clark Kent’s childhood friend and aspiring reporter from 2001 to 2011. For the final season, she changed her status to recurring guest star after having played the character for nine straight seasons in favor of pursuing other projects. Chloe herself was written as the cousin of Clark’s eventual soul mate, Lois Lane. Besides competing for Clark’s affections with Lana Lang (Kreuk), her story arc revolved around her investigative efforts to expose the Luthor family’s criminal dealings and the existence of Kryptonite-mutated villains of the week.
After years of yearning after Clark and a relationship with Jimmy Olsen’s older brother, the series concluded with Chloe marrying Oliver Queen aka Green Arrow, played by current This is Us star Justin Hartley. Her story was continued in the comic book Smallville Season 11, in which Chloe eventually became pregnant. There was an official comic book adaption of Mack’s character added to the Superman canon, but it did not go very far.
