Scientology has some A-list followings: A host of actors and actresses are associated with the notorious church. One of the most famous supporters is Tom Cruise, which begs the question: Was his ex-wife Nicole Kidman ever a member? And if so, what effect did the organization have on your life? The story of how Scientology has interfered with some of the biggest names in Hollywood may surprise you.
Tom Cruise first became a Scientologist
Cruise was first introduced to Scientology through his first wife, Mimi Rogers. The actress had grown up in the church and her father was a prominent member. When Cruise began attending the religion's meetings, church leader David Miscavige was excited. He saw Cruise as a way to bring Scientology into the mainstream and began courting the actor. He tempts you to join the group with lavish gifts and personal training. Miscavige's efforts paid off when Cruise devoted himself to Scientology.
However, Miscavige saw Cruise's relationship with Rogers as a problem. According to the book, Fair Play: The Incredible Untold Story of Scientology in Australia, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald Miscavige wanted full control of Cruise, and as long as he was in a relationship with Rogers, his father-in-law would have the upper hand. Miscavige wanted Cruise, whom he considered the church's greatest asset, all to himself.
Scientology encouraged Tom Cruise's relationship with Nicole Kidman
When Cruise met Kidman in 1990, Miscavige went to great lengths to foster the relationship, estranging Cruise from his current wife. His efforts included getting 20 of his most dedicated fans to stay up all night, planting a romantic field of wildflowers so Cruise could run with Kidman.
"It just shows how twisted and corrupt Scientology is," Marty Rathbun, a former high-ranking church executive, told journalist Tony Ortega. “Why would Scientology want to promote Tom's promiscuity? Because Mini was connected to her father Phil Sickler, and Miscavige wanted to own Tom directly. But then, just a few months later, Wilhere got hit because he reported that Nicole had gotten her claws in and Miscavige was now worried she was going to take him away.'
Although Rogers was heartbroken and did his best to save her marriage, Cruise left her for Kidman. Rogers, disgusted at the way the church had encouraged the breakup of her marriage, left Scientology.
Kidman and Cruise were soon married in a Scientology-style service, and the couple moved to the Int Base, so they could study Scientology full-time. Kidman reached high levels within the organization, higher than most of its members in her entire life. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Kidman was promoted to Operational Thetan II (OT II), and was just one level away from 'learning about the evil galactic lord Xenu, his spaceship and exploding volcanoes'.
Nicole Kidman became a problem for Scientology leaders
Scientology leaders went into overdrive to prevent Cruise from leaving the organization and instead cast Kidman as the bad guy. According to the documentary, Going Clear, as reported by American Magazine, Miscavige enacted a plan to 'facilitate the breakup' of Kidman and Cruise.
The first step was to send in church officials to audit Cruise's state of mind and arouse his paranoia. Cruise became concerned that Kidman was confiding his problems to non-church members, so he requested a wiretap from his wife, which the church helped coordinate.
The church then encouraged the couple's two adopted children, Isabella and Connor, to turn against their mother, so Cruise would get full custody of them.
Why Nicole Kidman left Scientology
Kidman first stated that she was no longer a Scientologist in 1997 for Australian reporter Anne Summers. By 2001, her marriage to Cruise had ended, and the church had gotten her children to stay away from her.
The devastating effect of church doctrine on Kidman's relationship with her children is demonstrated in a story told by actress Leah Remini, who also left the Church of Scientology. Remini now speaks out against the organization and has written a book, titled Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, in which she describes an experience she had with Cruise's children. Remini says she was in a car with the children after attending his father's wedding to his third wife. Kate Holmes. Remini asked the children if they had seen her mother recently. Isabella responded, “Not if I have the choice. Our mother is an [expletive] SP [Suppressive Person]'.
Scientology keeps Nicole Kidman away from her older children
Kidman is now married to singer Keith Urban, and the couple have been joined by two daughters: Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret. But Kidman still has a lot of love for her estranged older children. She doesn't see them often and wasn't even invited to her wedding, because she's not a Scientologist, but she's made it clear that she's available whenever they want to see her. Kidman opened up about the relationship in an interview with Who.
"I know 150 percent that I would give my life for my children because that is my purpose," she said. Regarding her older children's practice of Scientology, Kidman said: “They are adults. They are capable of making their own decisions. They have made decisions to be Scientologists and, as a mother, it is my job to love them. And I'm an example of that tolerance and that's what I believe, that it doesn't matter what your child does, the child has love and that child has to know that love is available and I'm open here. I think it's very important because if you take that away from a child, to cut that off in any child, in any relationship, in any family, I think it's wrong. So that's our job as parents, to always offer unconditional love.'
