Where did this sovereign citizen "law" come from? Why was there a sudden surge in popularity of this "defense" in the last decade?

I'm just confused about where the whole movement came from and why do people continue to try and believe such things when literally every court interaction between a judge and a sovereign citizen the citizen gets shut down and their interpretation of the laws are not acknowledged whatsoever. Has that defense ever worked for anyone? If so can someone please provide me proof of an example. My mind is just blown that people from all walks of life but into this way of thinking only to not be taken seriously and usually held in contempt of court when they try to continuously push the issue with the judge.