HBO’s Scientology Documentary “Going Clear” Resurfaces That Horrifying Story of
HBO’s chilling documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, which aired last night,exposed multiple aspects of the controversial religious organization founded by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard. But one of the most disturbing stories in the film is the account of how the church reportedly helped recruit a girlfriend for Hollywood’s most famous Scientologist, Tom Cruise.
The story of what befell Nazanin Boniadi — an Iranian actress who has since appeared on Homeland and How I Met Your Mother — isn’t breaking news. Vanity Fair extensively covered it in 2012. But if you haven’t read about her reported experiences, the revelations in HBO’s documentary (based off of Lawrence Wright’s book of the same name) were probably stunning, to say the least. Boniadi was reportedly recruited without her knowledge to be a potential new girlfriend for the Mission Impossible actor and groomed to meet his very exacting standards.
According to the documentary, Cruise lamented that he wanted to find a new girlfriend (this was following his breakup with Penelope Cruz, several years after his marriage to Nicole Kidman had ended). In order to placate their biggest star (and, according to the film, keep him close to their organization) the Church of Scientology reportedly undertook an active mission to recruit a new girlfriend for Cruise, rather than leave the whole thing up to some random encounter on OkCupid, you know?
In 2004, Boniadi was a medical student and aspiring actress with deep ties to the Church of Scientology (her mother was a member). Both the documentary and Vanity Fair article describe how she was first convinced to dump her then-boyfriend, having been shown his private E-meter sessions (a type of “confessional” that is a routine part of Scientology members’ lives), which reportedly revealed he was cheating on her.
With that boyfriend out of the picture, all that was standing in the way of Cruise’s perfect coupling were a few pesky physical issues, like Boniadi’s teeth and hair. According to Vanity Fair, she was told to ditch her braces (which she did). She was then reportedly given a makeover which included a high-fashion shopping spree and dye job to Cruise’s liking. At this point, all my red flag alarm bells would be ringing like crazy, but keep in mind Boniadi didn’t think she was doing all of this just for some guy. She reportedly believed she was being cast in a series of Scientology-based films. (Changing hair color or other physical aspects is standard fare for actresses, after all.)
Vanity Fair’s original article has more details of Boniadi and Cruise’s courtship, which included a chance meeting and subsequent “dream date,” reportedly orchestrated by church officials and culminating in her moving into his California mansion. All was seemingly going grand for the new couple (living with the world’s biggest movie star has to have its perks) until Boniadi got on Cruise’s bad side.
While dealing with a terrible headache, Boniadi reportedly expressed difficulty at understanding church leader David Miscavige while he was speaking to her. As the Vanity Fair article states, Scientologists believe their ability to communicate effectively is a vital trait; having someone question their ability to do so is a definite deal breaker, as Liz Lemon would put it.
In Going Clear, directed by Alex Gibney, the filmmakers reiterate this account, describing a reported incident between Boniadi and Cruise during which the actor angrily pounded his fists on a table, admonishing her for daring to ask Miscavige to repeat himself.
Suffice it to say, after that day, her relationship with Cruise was on its way out. But unlike your crummy boyfriend from sophomore year, he didn’t even bother to send her a “SRY NOT WRKING OUT; LETZ JUST B FRIENDS” text. Instead, as the documentary reports, the world’s most famous action star let church officials do his dirty work for him.
According to the film, the punishment for falling out of favor with Cruise and top-ranking church officials was brutal. Boniadi was sent to Scientology’s center in Clearwater, Florida, where she was reportedly made to do hours of grueling physical labor. When she tried to share her pain (remember, she’d just been dumped by someone she’d fallen head over heels with), her reward was more gruesome physical labor.
It should be noted that the Church of Scientology denies many of the allegations in the documentary as well those in the Vanity Fair story. Boniadi has never spoken out publicly about the rumors and reports, likely because of a series of ironclad confidentiality agreements she signed before even meeting Cruise.
Again, none of this is brand-new information. But watching a major media giant like HBO tackle the story head-on is quite unbelievable, considering the powerful connections many of those featured in the film still have in the entertainment industry. These aren’t just rumors whispered on gossip blogs that can be easily brushed off as nonsense anymore. These are troubling stories, backed up by multiple sources, who paint a disturbing picture of a world where privilege and money buy isolation and freedom from consequence. And sadly, it’s women like Boniadi who seem to repeatedly pay the price.
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Rebecca Rose Writer I’m a writer for Cosmopolitan.com manning the fort during the night shift (because I love staying up late and hate getting up early in the morning).
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