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As Jerry grew older, he saw contradictions everywhere, in his religion and in himself. On the first night that he slept with his girlfriend, he tried to commit suicide. As he moved from innocence to knowledge, he faced constant crisis and self-revision. He shares parts of that journey with fellow comedian Tiffany Haddish, who was also a Jehovah's Witness as a child, but with very different outcomes. And we learn from Hoyt Richards' recovery: the first male supermodel, Hoyt was, simultaneously, part of a Doomsday cult.

As a boy, Jerry was two different people. At home, he was quiet and meek, aspiring to Jehovah’s Witnesses ideals. At school, or with his father on weekends, he was the future comedian. The first part of The Truth explores his innocence, trying to balance the fear of a world he was told was on the brink of armageddon, and the drudgery of being denied after school events, sports, and “worldly” concerns. And so, we seek out Witnesses on the streets of LA and find another young man, very much like him.