Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology

by Leah Remini

Scientology offers a clearly laid out scientific process that helps you to overcome your limitations and realize your full potential for greatness. It is presented as a well-defined path to achieving total spiritual freedom and enlightenment and a full understanding of yourself and others.

I wrote this book because I feel an urgency and responsibility to reveal the injustices and hypocrisy that were perpetrated against those who left and spoke out before me. Those who again and again have been harassed and bullied into silence. This book is also a personal act of defiance—against intolerance, which I have witnessed, lived with, and been part of for far too long.

L.A. has the greatest concentration of Scientologists in the world.

It’s about not being a wog” (a term for non-Scientologist, short for “Well and Orderly Gentleman”). Wogs are considered to be ignorant and unenlightened and to be avoided for their lack of priorities.

also felt I had to be something bigger than a Sea Org member to ever regain respect after being a deserter, so I thought the only way to do so was to become a celebrity, or what Scientology calls an Opinion Leader (one who is persuasive and whose opinion matters).

Being a Scientologist means you are responsible for all the bad things that happen to you (and anything good that was happening was due to the church),

(I hate when people say, “Enjoy it,” when you’re complaining about something. I am enjoying it. But I also enjoy complaining about it. It’s one of my favorite pastimes.)

So apparently my mom was right again. You know, they say when you get older you learn that your parents might actually know what they’re talking about.

There is no “right” way to be. I am flawed and imperfect, but am uniquely me. I don’t fit in and probably never will. And I don’t have to try to anymore. That other person was a lie. And let’s face it, normal is boring. We all have something to offer the world in some way, but by not being our authentic selves, we are robbing the world of something different, something special.

by their actions, they will show you who they are.

Scientologists are hardworking, dedicated, and caring people, albeit misinformed people, and I was no exception. The reason for their blind faith lies in their core belief that they alone have the answers to eradicate the ills of humanity. You run back to the safety of the group that shares your mentality, and in this way your world becomes very insular.

Belief and faith are great, but very few people have been led astray by thinking for themselves.

And to all my fellow troublemakers, I say, “Carry on.”

All I could say about the Colosseum is, it’s not like in the movies. Where’s the part where the gladiator comes out? Boring, as far as I was concerned.

to my fellow nonconformists, aka troublemakers. May you always continue to speak the truth.

No matter how old you are, you still have a life ahead of you and you can still make a change.

If this book does anything, I hope it gives readers permission to feel okay about admitting to a less-than-perfect life. To think for themselves. To be fucked up.

While this is disturbing, what’s even more upsetting is my belief that even if I had actual video footage of David Miscavige beating someone and showed a Scientologist, they wouldn’t care. Instead they believe that he is the only person truly helping this planet to become a better place, and that if he has to order his assistant to break the finger of someone he feels is cutting across that intention, the parishioners feel in the end that it’s okay. Truly.

Scientology says it is better to be dead than to be a victim. It’s not. Not even close.