Leah Remini is continuing her plight to expose the nature of the Church of Scientology with her investigations on Scientology and the Aftermath.
Remini, 48, became a member of Scientology at age 9 but she made her exit in 2013. She released her debut memoir, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, in 2015 followed by her A&E docuseries a year after. Aftermath, now an Emmy winner, entered Season 3 on November 27.
Remini and her co-host Mike Rinder are shifting gears in Season 3. Season 1 centers around disconnection and its impact over families, whereas Season 2 focuses on the religion's overall policies. Season 3 addresses how the church allegedly abuses money. While getting the FBI and local authorities to act has proven to be the show's biggest challenge, Scientology's attacks have apparently continued to persist throughout the production of Season 3.
"The attacks will continue to happen because that's the policy of Scientology," Remini told Newsweek regarding Scientology's Fair Game tactics, which she said is carried out on those it identifies as it's enemies. "They've continued this letter writing campaign to all of our advertisers at Disney. Mike's daughter, Taryn [Teutsch], is pretending to be a victim of domestic violence and has a hashtag, called Justice for Mom. And she's infiltrating organizations of abused women and children, pretending to be a victim herself of child abuse. People don't usually vet a person who claims they've been abused because these are good people who are victims being further victimized by this kind of imposter with an agenda."
"They're trying to get this hashtag trending, #FireMikeRinder. [Taryn's] at Disney picketing. It's just ridiculous, but this is what Scientology does. They're hoping that A&E will have enough pressure from Disney, their parent company, [and] enough advertisers will pull out. These are the tactics of Scientology," she added.
Remini's new season, unlike before, explored the Jehovah's Witnesses in a two-hour special. She talked about the similarities between the Christian denomination and Scientology, claiming criticism is addressed in a similar way.
"They send out these attack dogs on social media," she said. "Scientology hides behind the $3 billion they have with lawyers and social media. And they, too, are pretending they're descenders of [the] first amendment, freedom of religion and freedom of speech. And yet, they attack viciously anyone speaking out against the policies."
Remini continued, "It's the same with the Jehovah's Witnesses, except they're a little bit different [because] you have the Governing Body putting out their videos saying, 'Don't listen to apostates.' It's very similar...They have the same rhetoric.'"
The Church of Scientology has rejected Remini's claims. In doing so, the religious organization slammed the Second Act actress for supporting Rinder.
"That Leah Remini would support an abuser of women by trying to shame the victim's daughter is a new low even for her," the Church of Scientology said in a statement issued to Newsweek. "Mike Rinder abandoned his wife of 35 years and viciously attacked her when she tried to see him to talk some sense into him. His excuse that not all of her injuries presented themselves during the first paramedic examination on the scene is abhorrent. The Church of Scientology supports Taryn Teutsch in her efforts to obtain justice for her mother."
Scientology and the Aftermath airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on A&E.
This story was updated to include a statement from the Church of Scientology.
About the writer
Dory Jackson is a New York-based entertainment journalist from Maryland. She graduated from Randolph-Macon College—in May 2016—with a focus in Communication ... Read more
