Here’s Why Leah Remini Is Suing the Church of Scientology

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

Leah Remini Today: Suit against the Church of Scientology

Actor Leah Remini filed a lawsuit against the Church of Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige, on August 2. The former sitcom star accuses the organization of harassment, intimidation, surveillance, and defamation over a period of 17 years and is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. Remini left the church in 2013 and has since been an outspoken critic.

Who Is Leah Remini?

Leah Remini is an actor and television host best known for her role as Carrie Heffernan on the popular sitcom The King of Queens. As a teenager, she dropped out of school to pursue her acting dream. Working continually for years on a variety of shows, Remini flirted with larger success until 1998, when she landed her career-defining part opposite Kevin James on Queens, which ran for nine seasons. Remini is also well-known for her ties to the Church of Scientology, which she left in 2013. She wrote about her highly publicized exit in her best-selling memoir and explored the church’s practices in the Emmy-winning TV docuseries Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Leah Marie Remini
BORN: June 15, 1970
BIRTHPLACE: Brooklyn, New York
SPOUSE: Angelo Pagán (2003-present)
CHILDREN: Sofia Bella
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Gemini

Early Years

Leah Marie Remini was born in Brooklyn, New York, on June 15, 1970. After her parents separated, her mother, Vicki, began dating a man who was involved in the Church of Scientology, and Vicki later moved with her two daughters to a Scientology compound in Clearwater, Florida.

At age 13, Remini again was on the move, this time to Los Angeles. She soon dropped out of school to pursue a career in show business.

TV Shows: 'Living Dolls,' 'Saved by the Bell,' and 'The King of Queens'

Leaning on her native Brooklyn accent and attitude, Remini landed an appearance on Head of the Class in 1988, and followed with two episodes of Who’s the Boss? in 1989. That same year, Remini scored her first starring role with ABC’s Living Dolls, a Who’s the Boss? spin-off that also featured a young Halle Berry. The show didn’t catch on, though, and Remini resumed her career with appearances on Normal Life, The Hogan Family, and Guns of Paradise. In 1991, she landed recurring parts on Man in the Family and Saved by the Bell.

In 1994, Remini tried out for the role of Monica on what became the massively popular NBC series Friends. The part went to Courteney Cox, though Remini did make a guest appearance on the show.

Never one to be without acting work for long, Remini joined the cast of Phantom 2040 in 1995, lending her voice to an animated character. That same year, she landed another prominent role on a series called First Time Out, but it met a fate similar to that of Living Dolls and was cancelled after 12 episodes.

In 1997, a leading part came along again for Remini, this time in the form of the sitcom Fired Up, which co-starred NYPD Blue’s Sharon Lawrence. The show wasn’t a smash hit, but it did last 28 episodes and provide her the exposure to land her biggest acting job to date.

The King of Queens and Kevin Can Wait

In September 1998, Leah Remini made her first appearance opposite Kevin James on The King of Queens. It marked the start of a career-defining run for the actress, who again mined her New York roots for the role of sharp-tongued Carrie Heffernan, the on-screen wife of James’ delivery man character, Doug. Remini became a household name as she rode the high tide of the show, and she appeared in her first big film role, opposite Vince Vaughn in the comedy smash Old School, in 2003.

A decade after The King of Queens came to an end in 2007, Remini joined her old co-star James for the season 1 finale of the comic’s new show, Kevin Can Wait. With audiences responding favorably to the familiar pairing, Remini became a regular cast member, though Kevin Can Wait ultimately failed to survive past a second season.

Hosting Gigs: 'The Talk' and 'Dancing with the Stars'

Beginning in 2010, Remini served as an original co-host of Sara Gilbert’s daytime show, The Talk. CBS chose not to renew Remini’s contract after one season. Although she first suggested co-host Sharon Osbourne played a role in the decision, Remini said years later her outspoken personality rankled executives and the network was “absolutely” right to let her go. “If I wanted to be in this kind of show I need to shut my mouth and do what my bosses tell me to do. I can’t do that. That (was) maybe not a good fit in that way,” she said.

In 2013, Remini took on the lead role on ABC’s Family Tools, an adaptation of the BBC series White Man Van, as well as a different type of TV project by competing on Season 17 of Dancing with the Stars, eventually finishing in fifth place. She later returned as co-host of the popular dance competition show for two seasons.

In 2014, she debuted Leah Remini: It’s All Relative, a reality TV show that also featured her husband and daughter. Her departure from the Church of Scientology had seemingly breathed new life into her professional career.

In 2022, Remini became a judge for the 17^th season of the Fox reality competition series So You Think You Can Dance. She also hosts People Puzzler, a crossword-style game show on the Game Show Network.

Scientology: Memoir, 'Scientology and the Aftermath,' and Lawsuit

Alongside the likes of Tom Cruise, Leah Remini was one of the Church of Scientology’s staunchest defenders throughout her career—that is, until she publicly broke with the organization in July 2013. The announcement pushed Remini back into the headlines, as she made the talk show rounds to explain her decision, in turn drawing a strong response from the Church to rebut her claims of abusive behavior.

In late 2015, Remini published a memoir, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology. The controversial subject matter propelled the book to the top of The New York Times bestseller list and also drew the interest of television executives. In November 2016, A&E premiered Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, a documentary series that featured the actor interviewing other former members of the Church.

Shortly before the launch of season 2 of Scientology and the Aftermath, Remini learned that her show had been nominated for two Emmy Awards. In September 2017, Scientology and the Aftermath claimed an Emmy for Outstanding Informational Series or Special.

Additionally, the show had prompted an investigation into accusations of rape involving actor Danny Masterson and a potential cover-up by the Church. After the first of a reported four victims revealed her story to Remini, the actor encouraged her to file a report with the Los Angeles Police Department and personally followed up with police to see how the investigation was proceeding. Masterson, who was fired from the Netflix show The Ranch in December 2017 over the allegations, was convicted of two counts of rape in May 2023.

Remini’s interviews with two of the alleged rape victims finally aired in August 2019, concluding the celebrated three-season run of Scientology and the Aftermath.

Lawsuit against the Church

In August 2023, Remini filed a lawsuit against the Church of Scientology, accusing the organization and its leader, David Miscavige, of harassment, intimidation, surveillance, and defamation over a 17-year period. The actor is seeking punitive and compensatory damages for psychological and economic harm she claims Scientology inflicted upon her.

“While advocating for victims of Scientology has significantly impacted my life and career, Scientology’s final objective of silencing me has not been achieved,” Remini wrote in a statement on social media. “People who share what they’ve experienced in Scientology, and those who tell their stories and advocate for them, should be free to do so without fearing retaliation from a cult with tax exemption and billions in assets.”

Net Worth

Remini’s net worth is estimated to be around $25 million as of August 2023, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Husband and Daughter

Remini met Angelo Pagán, a performer at the Cuban club El Floridita in Los Angeles, in 1996. She married the actor, singer, and restaurateur in 2003, and the couple has one child together: a daughter named Sofia Bella, born in June 2004. Pagán also has three sons from a prior relationship.

Like Remini and her mother, Pagán also left the Church of Scientology in 2013.

Quotes

• We’ve heard from people who were inside Scientology, who told me, ‘I watched your show. I went on the internet. I decided to leave. I am fighting for my children after watching your show.’ We get tons of those. And it’s those moments that you go, ‘OK—we’re doing something.’

• People don’t realize how much blood, sweat, and tears go into every show—whether it’s a hit or not. You develop friendships with the cast and crew, so it’s like a little death every time they go away.

• When you get the applause or the joke lands and you get the laugh, you can’t match that feeling. This business that I love is the drug I never took.

You Might Also Like

• Nicole Richie’s Surprising Adoption Story

• The Story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Her Mother

• Queen Camilla's Life in Photos