Leah Remini’s fight against Scientology continues. The actress opened up about her new A&E docuseries, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, with Savannah Guthrie during the Today show on Monday, November 28.
Remini, 46, quit the Church of Scientology three years ago. Since then, she has spoken out about the controversial religion on multiple occasions and even wrote about her experiences in the 2015 book Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology.
The King of Queens alum told Guthrie, 44, that she’s not “going to get a dime” for her latest efforts, and that she decided to do the documentary after seeing how former members have been treated.
“I just felt that I had a responsibility to help out where I could,” she said. “I’m not a big fan of bullies. It is part of who I am and I was a fighter in the Church, this is what they taught me, and so I’m going to continue my fight. But I’m on the right side of that fight now. I’m sending a message that I’m not going to sit back and allow it to go on. … If you speak out you are labeled an enemy of the Church. [The] Church has policies on how to deal with their enemies and they go after them.”
Remini said that leaving Scientology behind was difficult, but she had a lot of support. “For me, it pales in comparison to what former high-ranking executives and parishioners had to deal with,” she said. “It’s not easy to walk away… You are leaving everything you know. You are giving up your whole life because that is what it takes to be a Scientologist, and then you are going to be losing your family because most of your family and friends are Scientologists.”
Remini hopes that her actions give “victims” strength. The Church of Scientology, meanwhile, has publicly and repeatedly denied Remini’s allegations and released a statement on Remini’s new project on November 26.
Last year, a rep for the Church of Scientology spoke out about Remini following her book release. “Desperate for attention with an acting career stuck in a nearly decade-long tailspin, Leah Remini needs to move on with her life,” the rep told Us. “Instead, she seeks publicity by maliciously spreading lies about the Church using the same handful of bitter zealots who were kicked out years ago for chronic dishonesty and corruption and whose false claims the Church refuted years ago, including through judicial decisions.”
Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, which is eight hour-long episodes, premieres on A&E on Tuesday, November 29 at 10 p.m. ET.
