Leah Remini says Tom Cruise 'morphing' into Scientology leader David Miscavige, manipulated 'good guy' image
Leah Remini has accused Tom Cruise of gradually morphing into David Miscavige, the controversial leader of the Church of Scientology.
“I think it’s time for people to start waking up to the real facts here. Tom has for years manipulated his image to be the good guy,” the 50-year-old actress told Us Weekly in a statement on Monday. “Although I believe there was a time when Tom was a decent and kindhearted person, he has morphed himself into David Miscavige and is completely dedicated to Scientology’s mission to ‘clear’ planet Earth — which means making 80 percent of the world’s population into Scientologists.”
Raised as a Scientologist from the tender age of 9, Remini eventually left the organization after questioning Miscavige's managing style. She later published a memoir titled 'Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology', and currently co-hosts a podcast titled 'Scientology: Fair Game' with Mike Rinder.
That said, this is barely the first time the 'Glory Daze' star has attacked Cruise. She recently heaped praise on actress Thandie Newton after she revealed how she was "scared" of the Top Gun star while filming 'Mission: Impossible 2'.
“That takes huge balls to do what she did, and if more people speak out in that way, and be brave enough to do so, I think we might get somewhere,” Remini said on July 23. “Tom has gotten away with being this ‘nice guy,’ because that’s what Scientology policy says — to create good PR in the world and make those ‘good actions’ known. But if you actually look at his actions, they’re not consistent."
Remini doubled down on her claims about Cruise just days later. “Tom has for years used Scientology and its staff to do his dirty work,” she told Us Weekly, before calling Tommy Davis, former senior vice president at the Church of Scientology Celebrity Centre, as one of their “thugs in suits.” The New York native also alleged that Cruise “used Scientology” to “break up with his former Scientologist girlfriend" and called into question his marriage to Nicole Kidman, 53. The pair went their separate ways in 2001 after 11 years of marriage. “Davis … used confidential Scientology counseling sessions to bring a wedge between Tom and his wife Nicole because Nicole didn’t want to do Scientology anymore,” Remini claimed. “And David Miscavige, through Marty Rathbun, got rid of Nicole to get Tom closer to Scientology.”
This comes shortly after Remini learned that her upcoming project 'Scientology: Black Ops' was canceled by Australia’s 7News last minute after the series was already scheduled to launch earlier this month. “This show had been legally vetted since January by Channel 7,” she told Us Weekly. “Up to 10 hours before it was going to air, it was still scheduled to go. The last-minute decision to kill it has Tom Cruise, Tom Davis, and James Packer written all over it.”
The network later wrote in a statement to the magazine that "7NEWS adjusted the scheduling of the series of its own volition and due to legal concerns.”
The 'Cheers' alum later went on to allege that Cruise had caused "a woman I know to go bankrupt” through the Church. “Tom has for years used his Church to torture his employees by sending them in for interrogations at their expense, causing a woman I know to go bankrupt simply because the hours she worked for Tom made it impossible for her to raise her family,” she claimed. “She was interrogated and punished by her church for years, causing her to lose her home. These are some of the things Tom has done that never get talked about, and I think it’s time to change that.”