Leah Remini on Divorce, Healing and the Fight Against Scientology: ‘It’s Been Worth It’ (Exclusive)

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.

You found your voice…
Right. I was raised in Bensonhurst before I moved to L.A. Concepts of family first and loyalty were instilled in me until I was 13. I have a tattoo on my arm that says, “But still the fighter remains,” because that’s what you need to get out of an oppressive system. You find that fighter in you, not who they’ve beaten you down to think you are.

You’ve said Mike Rinder, a former senior member of the Church who left in 2007, helped you get out. How so?
Mike was the first person I called when I was thinking of leaving. That alone was a high crime in Scientology, talking to somebody who left publicly. He was so comforting.

Were you afraid to leave?
I wasn’t because I didn’t realize what this organization is capable of. I’m afraid now. They have over 200 Scientology front groups and social media accounts. The Church tells them, “Hey, create an X account and attack these people.” [Remini alleges social media harassment as part of her lawsuit.]

So members are punished for leaving?
You can leave, you just can’t speak out. You can’t exercise your First Amendment right or go on an ex-member’s blog and talk with [others] who experienced abuse in Scientology. You’ll get an operation launched by OSA [Office of Special Affairs] to discredit you and destroy your life until you shut up.

And you’re still being threatened?
They harass my underage daughter online. They’ve [used] a Scientology term that means to kill me [and] basically to erase me from the face of the earth. When you talk to a lawyer, they say, “It’s going to cost you more to defend yourself than to pay them off.” And Scientology knows that. [A representative for the Church tells Us, “All allegations of harassment, break-ins and other salacious alleged conduct are false.”]

Is Sofia scared?
I have to tell her every day, “Ma’am, be aware.” She’s constantly petrified that her phone is being tapped. I had to get her help for that, and she’s OK; we got through a rough patch. It takes a toll.

Have you thought about leaving Hollywood? [Scientology’s headquarters are located in L.A.]
Of course. It’s intended to make me shut up and scare me and have friends and family members say, “Maybe you should stop advocating for victims.” The policy says the intention of these operations is to silence, muzzle, destroy utterly and obliterate the target.

Do you think you’ll ever give up?
I will likely not give up, especially now that Mike’s gone. If it was affecting Sofia in a way that was debilitating to her, I would pass the torch to somebody. But she doesn’t want me to give up and Mike wouldn’t want me to give up. In his honor, I feel an obligation to continue.

You released your memoir nearly 10 years ago, and people still talk about it. How does it feel to be a trailblazer?
I don’t think of myself in those terms. I think of myself as a conduit for the brave people who told us their stories.

For a while, famous Scientologists like Tom Cruise and John Travolta were very vocal about the organization. They’ve become less so. Why do you think that is?
Because they’re being exposed for what they truly believe in and realized, “We better shut up, or we’re not going to have careers.” But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t in agreement with its policies.

In 2023, Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women. Has that damaged Scientology’s image?
Scientology continues to be exposed. People are curious enough to do their own research and sift through the lies and PR machine of Scientology.

Do you reach out to members who have left the Church?
There’s a prerequisite for me to talk to you — you have to violate Scientology’s high crime laws and publicly speak out. If you don’t, I want nothing to do with you because I don’t believe you left, and I think you’re a plant. I [can’t] let somebody into my life or my daughter’s life who is an informant for Scientology.

Longtime Scientologist Kirstie Alley passed away in 2022. Did you ever wish you could’ve reconciled with her?
No, I hoped she’d leave. She [couldn’t] reconcile with me unless she [left].

Do you think people like Tom or John will ever leave?
I used to hope a lot of these people would, but now I feel like they need Scientology. I don’t know if they’d make it in the real world.

What have you learned through your healing journey?
I’ve learned just how strong I really was. I was willing to stand up for what I believed in. Listen, I’m still an a**hole. [Laughs.] I have a temper. I’m trying to be better, but I’m never going to be a perfect person, and I’m not trying to be. The other lesson I’ve learned is being OK [with] being uncomfortable. That’s where I’m finding growth. Even [in Scientology], there was comfort. I’m supposed to say this and feel that. Right now, it’s like, “You’re on your own, kid.”

How is your mental health?
It’s day-by-day. I’ve given myself compassion. If I want to sit in bed and cry and watch TV or play Canasta with my mom, I give myself a break. I find the joys. Like, if I want to have cake, I’m going to eat the f***ing cake. Even though I’m going through menopause and weight gain and all that. [Laughs.] I’m going, “It’s good. Just enjoy.”

How is your life different now compared to when you were an active Scientologist?
I don’t need to report to Scientology every day for two and a half hours minimum. I don’t need to give all my money to Scientology. I’m gaining back an education I never had because they didn’t want me to go to school. I could have a drink whenever I want to. [Laughs.] It’s glorious.

What does Sofia remember of Scientology?
Thankfully, I got out before she was indoctrinated so she didn’t remember a whole lot. I’m thankful I didn’t have to get her into therapy to offset what they would eventually do to her, which is teach her to accept all kinds of abuse, mental, physical, you know, sexual, all of it.

Is she proud of you?
Very. I have notes around the house saying, “You’re the strongest person I know, Mommy. Don’t give up.” I mean, she’s a normal child — she still makes fun of my long nails, and if I don’t dress right, she sends me clothes like, “This is more the vibe.”

Have you found a new faith?
I was baptized [as a] Catholic when I was a child. I don’t force religious beliefs on myself or my daughter, but I believe in God and in faith. As Mike said, “If you want to know the difference between a real religion and Scientology, look at what they do when you leave.”

Sofia’s in college. How does it feel to be an empty nester?
I’m still trying to find my way. It’s hard to take the role of an everyday mom away. Some people celebrate this part of their lives, but I don’t. It’s the job I love the most. I feel such a sense of loss of my baby. Thankfully she still calls me three times a day to ask me questions. It’s very difficult to have all these things happening at once — your baby’s out of the house, you’re getting a divorce, you’re going through menopause and you’re being hunted by a cult. [Laughs.]

Why did you go back to school?
In the days of social media, “I dropped out of school and I’m making money on Instagram” and all this bulls***, I don’t agree with it. I think education is important. I don’t need a job. It’s for the purpose of knowledge and understanding yourself. It’s about pushing past what you think you can do.

When you and Angelo announced your divorce, you said it was because you had both changed. How so?
You become friends, but there’s more to marriage than that. I saw that Angelo wanted something different. When you’re giving what you give in a relationship, but it’s not what the person wants, it’s like, “So you don’t appreciate what I’m doing? Well, I don’t appreciate what you’re doing because that’s not what I want.” When I met him, I was in Scientology as a different person. Living in the same household, you’re acting out your roles, and if we’re not changing those roles as our needs change, you’re just growing apart. We just decided we should file for divorce and do a clean slate so nobody feels obligated to do this or that.

Do you think leaving Scientology had anything to do with it?
I don’t know. I just think I was fighting for a life that I never fully had autonomy over. Tomorrow’s not promised. I don’t know how much time I have left. I didn’t want to waste [time]. It’s hard to be the breadwinner, a wife and a mother, the one who does all the holidays, and then wants to rub your husband’s feet. That’s not something that I’m going to do. And it’s something he deserves.

Were you nervous about possibly starting over with someone new?

Right now, I can’t see sitting across from another guy and listening to [him]… My first question [would be,] “Are you in therapy?” The answer is probably no, so no need to further the conversation. I’ve only lived alone for six months in my whole lifetime. That’s where you find yourself, and that’s what I’ve been doing.

So you’re not dating?
My manager asked me, “Do you want to do a dating show?” I was like, first of all, I would never do a f***ing dating show, and two, Sofia already told me and Angelo we’re not allowed to date.

Do people try to set you up?
Constantly. I say, “Don’t even continue your sentence. I have zero interest.”

Speaking of friends, are you and Jennifer Lopez in touch?
Right after the divorce, we’d text each other loving messages of support. Sometimes you don’t talk to people every day like you used to, but that doesn’t mean the love is lost. Friendships ebb and flow. That doesn’t mean we’re at odds.

What’s next for you work-wise?
I want to produce and direct projects that are important to me. I don’t want to work just to work. I want to be on sets that are joyful, where you can make jokes and not have to talk to HR.

Would you do a King of Queens reboot?
Of course I would consider it. It would be hard to do a show like that without Jerry Stiller [the late actor who played her dad]. They’d have to think of something to represent him.

How are you feeling about turning 55?
I’m starting to find my own power. Before, I felt like I was in a bubble, like I wasn’t feeling my life. I feel more optimistic [and] like I’m finding my way. It’s an awakening. It’s scary and exciting.

An additional statement from Remini in response to the Church of Scientology’s claims:

“Scientology insists it does not stalk, harass, and terrorize people. But there are over seven decades of documented cases of retaliation, intimidation [and] surveillance…. Examples of these operations can easily be found in documentaries like HBO’s Going Clear and the three seasons of my A&E series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.”

I speak for… individuals who have been stalked, harassed [and] threatened… by Scientology for daring to speak the truth, file police reports, or seek justice.… Those of us who understand this organization know it is not a [genuine] religion and does not deserve an equal voice….

I am being forced to bring this multi-billion-dollar organization to civil court because the governments that should protect people like me—those who leave, those who speak out, those who seek justice—have failed to act. They’ve been intimidated, misled, or corrupted. But I refuse to be. And I refuse to let this continue in silence.”

For more on Leah Remini, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly — on newsstands now.