Vanity Fair's Maureen Orth wrote an amazing exposé on how the Church of Scientology allegedly controls Tom Cruise's life and relationships.
We scored a copy of Vanity Fair at a nearby newsstand (the issue is currently only available in NYC) and read Orth's story.
Here are some of her most interesting claims:
- Orth reports that the church saw Nicole Kidman as a threat to Cruise's spiritual well-being. Cruise and Kidman's two children, Bella and Connor, then ages six and eight, were reportedly told their mother was such a person and said they "hated seeing her."
- Penelope Cruz and Tom Cruise went their separate ways after she was dismissed by Scientology leader David Miscavige for maintaining her Buddhist beliefs.
- The church was allegedly desperate to find Cruise an appropriate girlfriend because he was poised to donate millions to new buildings for Scientology and they feared an outsider could threaten the project. The church denies that there was ever such a project.
- Scientology claims eight million people around the world practice the religion. Orth says the number could be as low as 40,000.
- When Cruise was married to Kidman, he "drifted away" from the church, Marty Rathbun, a former member, told Orth. The organization still had a staff that tracked the couple, "reporting every single detail going on in the house during the entire marriage with Nicole--how they were getting along, their disputes, what he was doing movie-wise, and his relations in Hollywood."
- David Miscavige, who is widely known as Tom Cruise's best friend, reportedly loves dishing about celebrities. His former aide told Orth "Miscavige's comments were usually about Cruise's sex life. He would roll his eyes and say, 'Jeez, can you believe it?'" The church denied Miscavige has ever revealed private information.
- Orth reports that when the church was "auditioning" actresses to be Tom Cruise's new girlfriend back in 2004, they eliminated anyone who had participated in a threesome.
- When Iranian actress Nazanin Boniadi made the cut, Orth says that Scientologists persuaded her to end her relationship with her boyfriend. They then took her shopping at Saks and Burberry to cheer her up.
- Cruise and Holmes were reportedly happy in the beginning of their relationship. A former Scientology aide told Orth "They would be sitting by themselves late at night, talking and laughing and kissing, a picture-perfect couple who seemed genuinely happy."
- Holmes' father, Martin, reportedly wrote a prenuptial agreement that filled five bankers' boxes. Marc Headley, a former Scientologist, said he heard that Martin never approved of the Church and helped protect Katie's rights.
The Vanity Fair issue with the full story is scheduled to hit newsstands nationwide on Monday.