It’s a social media saga for the scam era. A woman from the US is allegedly making a huge amount of money after she detailed the “insane” way her marriage imploded after a year in a massive 50-part TikTok series. The story is now going viral on the social media platform, and has now been picked up by media around the world. Divorces happen every day (unfortunately) so why all the fuss about this one?
When it comes to domestic dramas and juicy break-ups, social media and its devoted users gobble the gossip up. And this week, one saga in particular has been thrown into the spotlight.
Reesa Teesa has gone viral on TikTok after documenting how she realised her now ex-husband allegedly swindled her into a relationship, dubbing him a “pathological liar”.
The story has gripped audiences around the globe, causing her to become an internet sensation, report news.com.auand various other publications such as Forbes and Rolling Stone.
So, what does Teesa say happened, and why did it take 50 TikTok videos to explain?
Despite what may be considered a fairy-tale start, not all was what it seemed. The man, whom Teesa calls “Legion”, would promise her luxuries such as a new home and opulent vacations. However, things soon took a turn for the worse when she discovered that he had lied about nearly everything about his life.
Teesa only put the pieces together after a year of being with Legion, deciphering all of the lies he had told and discovering that he had fabricated various aspects of his life, such as bank statements and employment offers, in order to make her think that he was rich.
She also claims that he faked a number of phone calls and took her to dealerships to shop for a new car while alleging that he was a vice president of a condiment company.
However, the truth was that Legion was, in fact, a forklift truck driver with no money and an inclination for fibbing.
After the truth came to light, Teesa filed for divorce from the man and later dished on all of the details in a now-viral TikTok series, which she captioned: “Who TF Did I Marry?”
What’s more, her cautionary story not only saw her gain millions of views, but also a fair bit of money too.
While TikTok has never been clear about how much it pays content creators, it’s estimated to pay up to US$1 ($1.61) per 1000 views.
The reward programme doesn’t currently exist in New Zealand, but for American Teesa — who has grown her following on TikTok to 2 million since posting her first clip on February 15 — her quick success on the platform immediately placed her into TikTok’s programme.
With her divorce explainer series receiving approximately 150 million views, she will have made about US$150,000 (about $242,000), according to The Root.
But what makes Teesa’s TikToks so binge-worthy?
“I’m going to be truthful, even if it makes me look bad,” she revealed. “I’m going to be honest, but I’m also not going to be disrespectful.”
She reveals that she allegedly met Legion on a “Facebook dating site” back in March 2020 and the two clicked instantly.
However, just a few weeks later, the Covid-19 pandemic enforced lockdowns, which saw Legion move in with Teesa. The two started to really connect and plan a future together.
Unbeknownst to Teesa at the time, Legion was lying to her about who he was and what his job was. Instead, he promised that the couple would buy a home together using a lump sum he had saved in an offshore bank account.
“I know it was crazy but I really liked him. Things moved at a rapid, rapid pace,” she added. “He was telling me everything that I wanted to hear.”
However, Teesa soon starts to get suspicious of her beau, for whenever they come closer to purchasing a house, something always goes wrong and they don’t go through with the deal.
“I remember thinking, ‘What if we don’t get this house? What if he’s lying?’ But who makes up that they’re buying a house when they’re not?” she questioned.
“There was always an excuse with him and I didn’t know enough about the process to question stuff.”
While all of this was happening, Teesa fell pregnant and tragically miscarried. She was admitted to hospital for surgical care, but Legion was nowhere to be found, saying he was “too busy” at work to be able to comfort her in her time of need.
Even though she suspected he was “lying”, she continued on and things started to look up for the couple.
American woman Reesa Teesa has documented her insane divorce in a mammoth TikTok series called ‘Who TF Did I Marry?’. Photo / TikTok
The pair wed and Legion keeps on looking for a house, going one step further and offering a car into the mix for Teesa. However, just like the house hunting, the pair never bought a car, which Legion backed up with an array of strange excuses.
“At first I laughed it off because it was so absurd to me but then it became more frequent,” she said.
“But eventually I was emotionally and mentally at a loss. I knew things were changing and I was just like, “What the f**k is going on’.”
Then, Legion told a fib that seemed too crazy to believe, leading Teesa to go searching for answers.
She claims that Legion told her his ex-wife — who he shares two children with — had lost her daughter due to Covid, adding that he needed to send money to the family.
What’s more, Teesa realised something didn’t add up when she clocked onto a discrepancy in his social security number.
So when she found Legion’s ex-wife’s number on his divorce papers, she got in contact with her and everything became clear.
Legion was a forklift truck driver, not a vice president.
His daughter hadn’t passed away, she was in good health, and he hadn’t sent the young girl any money.
Legion’s ex-wife also warned Teesa that “everything he says is a lie”.
In just a few weeks, Teesa’s whole relationship fell apart, leading her to document the horrific ordeal on TikTok. Some have been so taken by her story that they think it should be made into a television show.
“Netflix needs to sign this up fast,” one person commented on the post.
“This story is actually insane,” another wrote. “I’ve not watched TV in days,” someone else said.
Others were impressed by Teesa’s honesty, despite there being parts of the story that made her look bad, praising her for helping other women spot red flags.
“Moral of the story: don’t let your singleness drive you into the wrong arms. Don’t rush the process and get to know the person,” one person shared.
“My attention span is extremely limited, but baby when I tell you I watched ALL 50 episodes on normal speed without skipping,” a second bragged.
Another chimed in: “You walked away faster than most. Please give yourself grace️.”
Since achieving TikTok stardom, Teesa has posted a number of follow up clips, revealing she was “embarrassed” and “shocked” by her own actions. Despite this, she wanted to tell her tale in order to help others who are “ignoring red flags” and “making bad decisions”.
