Leah Remini on Divorce, Healing and the Fight Against Scientology: ‘It’s Been Worth It’ (Exclusive)
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In July, it will be 12 years since Leah Remini left the Church of Scientology. The process of extracting herself from the controversial organization hasn’t been an easy one. Remini has made it her mission to expose the practices of the ultra-secretive religion, which she did both in her 2015 memoir, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, and her Emmy-winning A&E docuseries, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.
The actress says she’s been punished harshly for her efforts and claims the Church continues to harass her and her loved ones to this day. “It’s difficult to say it’s gotten easier when I have a multimillion-dollar organization terrorizing me and my family,” admits Remini, who filed a lawsuit in August 2023 against the Church of Scientology, alleging that she and her 20-year-old daughter, Sofia (dad is ex Angelo Pagan), were being harassed and surveilled. (A trial is scheduled for October.) “I’m hunted. My daughter is followed,” Remini tells Us Weekly. “There is constant surveillance.”
When reached for comment, a representative for the Church of Scientology responded, “For years Ms. Remini has repeated ad nauseam unsupported and untrue allegations to monetize her hate campaign against the Church of Scientology.” (Us did not pay Remini for this interview.) “There has never existed a shred of evidence to support, let alone prove, any of her outlandish claims .… Contrary to Ms. Remini’s representations, the Church has never committed or conspired to commit these crimes, and no evidence exists to suggest otherwise. The Church is not ‘surveilling’ or doing anything to Ms. Remini. On the contrary, she is harassing her former church.”
Still, Remini has no regrets about leaving and credits therapy with helping her undo the damage she says was done during her more than 30 years as a Scientologist. (The actress was 13 when her mom joined the Church. Remini — who dropped out of school in eighth grade — has said she was forced to work 12-hour days doing manual labor and lived in “roach-infested” dorms with other kids.) “There are good days and bad days, but in general, it’s been worth it,” she says. “My heart has opened up so much.”
As she approaches her 55th birthday on June 15, Remini is facing more big life changes. Last August, she and Pagan, 57, announced their split after 28 years of marriage. In January, her Aftermath cohost, Mike Rinder — with whom she shared a deep bond — died from cancer. She’s set to graduate from NYU in the fall with a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and is continuing to adjust to life as an empty nester.
Remini is more hopeful than she’s been in a long time. “I feel like I’m just starting to live,” she says. “I’m coming out of the fog and can see the forest through the trees.” She talks to Us about healing her past and embracing her future.
Can you believe it’s almost been 12 years since you left the Church of Scientology?
I can’t because I haven’t been able to truly extract myself. It hasn’t been as liberating as I’d hoped. [Still], I don’t have a church dictating who I can speak to, including my own family.
How involved was the Church in your everyday life?
The organization controls every aspect of your life. We have to report to our ethics departments — the Scientology police — and that’s an everyday activity. Once your parents become Scientologists, they’re no longer your parents. So, if you ask your mom a question, she’ll say, “Well, we have to look at the policy.” You’re being raised by Scientology. If you’re not [spending] two and a half hours a day studying Scientology, your parents will kick you out of the house.
What was the final straw for you?
During the last conversation I had with my ethics officer, he told me I needed to disconnect from my mother and stepfather because they had violated Scientology law. There was [also] six years of Shelly Miscavige being gone. [Shelly is the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige who has not been seen in public since 2007. After Remini’s 2013 missing person report, the Church stated that the LAPD had investigated her claims and found the report “unfounded.”] [I was] told I didn’t have the “f***ing rank” to ask about a senior ranking Sea Org official. That’s when I found the Brooklyn girl in me.
Content retrieved from: https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/leah-remini-on-leaving-scientology-divorce-and-starting-over/.
