Elizabeth Smart Tells Her Story Like Never Before
Elizabeth Smart is returning to the story that once captivated the nation, this time on her own terms. In Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart, a new Netflix documentary premiering Wednesday, Smart reflects on her 2002 abduction from her Salt Lake City home at age 14 and the nine months she spent in captivity.
Now 38, Smart says the film removes the emotional distance she long maintained between herself and the public narrative of her experience. Speaking with People, she explained that her goal is to help viewers understand the intense fear and loss of control victims endure. “I want people who have never experienced this to understand what it’s really like,” she said. “There’s a purpose to sharing my story.”
The documentary recounts the abuse and psychological control inflicted by Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, while also exploring the lasting emotional aftermath. Smart describes struggling with shame after her rescue, even though she knew intellectually that she was not at fault. Raised in a deeply religious Mormon household, she recalls feeling irreparably damaged and fearing rejection, emotions she later discovered were common among survivors.
Smart was rescued in March 2003 after someone recognized her from a television broadcast and contacted police in Sandy, Utah. She recalls the moment an officer quietly asked her to confirm her identity, a memory she describes as one of the happiest days of her life.
Following her return home, Smart leaned on her faith and family, went back to school, and later attended Brigham Young University. She eventually met her husband while serving as a missionary in Paris. Today, she is a mother of three and a leading advocate for survivors through the Elizabeth Smart Foundation, which supports victims of sexual violence and families of missing children.
Watching the documentary, Smart says, has given her a deeper appreciation of her parents’ pain during her disappearance. She hopes that by telling her story so openly, survivors will feel less alone and the public will gain a more honest understanding of trauma and its long-term impact.
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