Stephen Collins, best known for playing Reverend Eric Camden on 7th Heaven, fell off the Hollywood radar in 2014 after he confessed to being inappropriate with underage women. According to Hollywood Demons, an upcoming docuseries on Investigation Discovery, Collins has reportedly married a woman 40 years younger than him. The series, which premieres Monday, March 24, takes a closer look at where the disgraced TV star is now, nearly a decade after he left Hollywood behind. Once celebrated as the beloved father figure in the long-running family drama, Collins career never resuscitated after 2014.
The docuseries claims that the 77-year-old actor quietly remarried, tying the knot with a woman who was once a fan of 7th Heaven. “Stephen Collins now lives with a woman who is 40 years younger than him,” Dr Drew Pinsky claimed in the documentary. He added, “She was a superfan.”
The docuseries also gives an update on Stephen Collins’ current life. He’s reportedly living a quiet life in Iowa with his much younger wife, Jenny Nagel. The couple is said to share a love for meditation and keep a low profile. But the age gap between them is “raising eyebrows,” Dr Drew weighed in, especially considering Collins’ troubled past. He added, “Let’s hope he can stay committed to this woman and not harm anyone else.”
According to the producers, they reached out to more than “100 people” connected to Collins for the documentary. However, almost everyone either declined to speak or never responded. One producer shared off-camera that only men agreed to talk about their experiences with the former TV star.
Explore the darkness simmering within those in the search for money, power & fame. From the Stephen Collins scandal that rocked the 90s, to Housewives gone bad and the dark side of Power Rangers, not all Hollywood stories have a happy ending. Watch #HollywoodDemons Monday at 9/8c… pic.twitter.com/9n2O9nQnDh
— Investigation Discovery (@DiscoveryID) March 20, 2025
Jeremy London and Kyle Searles open up about Stephen Collins
According to Variety, only two actors from 7th Heaven, Jeremy London and Kyle Searles, chose to speak up about their former co-star Stephen Collins and the serious allegations against him. Kyle Searles, who joined the show in its later seasons, shared that he used to admire Collins on set. He described Collins as a down-to-earth and humble person, despite being a big TV star. However, after watching Collins’ 2014 confession for the first time during filming, Searles broke down in tears. He admitted feeling like his image of Collins was shattered, saying he had once put him on a pedestal. “This is the first time that I’ve ever thought that he’s full of sh*t,” he said.
Also read: I was exposed to unwanted nudity since childhood: Stephen Collins
Jeremy London, who appeared on 7th Heaven as Chandler Hampton, also spoke out. He described Collins as “America’s dad” during the show’s heyday and said he initially found it difficult to believe the allegations. London, who was fired, from the show after his DUI incident, explained that his own personal struggles made him hesitant to judge, but after hearing the full confession, he was deeply disturbed. Other cast members from 7th Heaven, including Beverley Mitchell, David Gallagher, and Mackenzie Rosman, spoke about the scandal last year when they launched a rewatch podcast.
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Collins’ confession back in 2014 led to a major fallout. He lost acting roles, and reruns of 7th Heaven were pulled from TV. At the time, TMZ released an audio recording in which Collins was heard speaking about his past misconduct, including “sexually abusing three underage girls” during a private counselling session with his ex-wife, Faye Grant. Earlier, in 2012, the LAPD had looked into an allegation involving an incident said to have occurred 18 years prior. However, according to CNN, the case did not move forward due to the “statute of limitations.” Later, in a statement to People, Collins admitted to inappropriate behaviour involving three minors in the years 1973, 1982, and 1994.
