14 DAY TRIAL // Leah Remini defected from the Church of Scientology in July 2013, after decades of being a member. She would later reveal that her decision was prompted by her growing dissatisfaction with the “methods” employed to keep members in check, especially those who dared ask the wrong questions - like she did.
As was to be expected, Scientology disowned her publicly the moment she started talking about her time as a member, trying to make her sound as if she was some disgruntled woman looking to get even by spreading lies. As it turns out, Leah is not done talking.
Remini chats with ABC’s 20/20
On October 30, ABC’s 20/20 segment will be an interview with Remini, conducted by Dan Harris, on the topic of Scientology, its methods and the reasons that led to her decision to leave.
It wasn’t an easy one, she says in a new promo: she was raised a Scientologist because her mother and father had been members since they were young, so having made up her mind to defect meant leaving everything she had ever known behind her.
She also knew that the Church would be making her life impossible, because, she says, once you’re out, “the mindset becomes ‘us against them,’” because members are made to “lose touch with the real world.”
Remini also talks about Scientology’s poster boy Tom Cruise, the number 1 celebrity spokesperson for the cult. The promo stops short of showing her answer the question of whether he played some part in her departure, but she does say that he is considered untouchable within the Church.
“Being critical of Tom Cruise is being critical of Scientology itself… You are evil,” she says.
Another unwanted whistleblower
Since her exit from Scientology, Leah has done her part to shed light on what she now considers a very dangerous cult.
She explained that she was forced to leave because she was starting to doubt everything she thought she knew. She began asking questions about leader David Miscavige’s presumed-missing wife and she hit a brick wall. There were signs that she would be sent away too, so she re-evaluated her position and decided to leave.
She wouldn’t be going alone, though, as she had her entire family by her side. If they hadn’t agreed to leave with her, they would have been barred all contact with her, as she would be labeled a Suppressive Person (SP).
Remini isn’t the only high-profile defector to go public with her story of how dangerous Scientology is and the extreme ways it goes to to keep its members under full control. With this new interview, she will reinforce her position of a very unwanted whistleblower, so expect another statement from Scientology soon.
Leah has a new book coming out on November 3, “Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology.”