Tom Cruise has made headlines all week after he allegedly launched into an expletive-laden tirade on the set of “Mission: Impossible 7” in audio that was leaked on Tuesday after members of the film crew were reportedly not following COVID-19 guidelines.
The “Top Gun” star then reportedly had another outburst days later which caused five people from the crew to quit the production altogether.
While Cruise was applauded by many within Hollywood for taking the ongoing pandemic seriously in the studio’s attempt to save a sputtering movie industry with “Mission: Impossible 7,” others had lambasted the Ethan Hunt actor for his antics and delivery.
One of the biggest criticisms came from actress and former Scientologist Leah Remini, who provided a lengthy statement to Tony Ortega’s “The Underground Bunker,” and described Cruise’s diatribe as “psychotic,” while alleging that Cruise – a devout believer in Scientology – is simply acting as though he cares about the well-being of others.
“Anything you see coming from Scientology and Scientologists, such as mask-wearing and supposedly humanitarian efforts, is just a show. It’s for public relations reasons only,” she alleged, while further charging the audio “shows his true personality.”
In a statement to Yahoo! Entertainment on Friday, a spokesperson refuted Remini’s allegations.
“The Church of Scientology has done more than any other religious institution in promoting COVID-19 prevention actions — throughout the U.S. and worldwide,” the memo reads. “Long before ‘stay at home’ directives, the Church took aggressive actions to prevent the spread of the virus. The Church’s leader acted well ahead of the curve.”
In addition to Remini, George Clooney issued his own reaction to Cruise’s outburst and told Howard Stern that while he understands Cruise’s stance, Clooney wouldn’t have delivered the message in the same manner Cruise had.
Meanwhile, Alec Baldwin also came to the defense of Cruise on Wednesday, tweeting that the action performer is “old school” and “knows preproduction, shooting, casting, script, marketing, release schedule.”
Cruise knows “all of it,” Baldwin added. “He also knows that when he goes 2 work, 300+ high-paying jobs appear. He wants to work. To make movies. So he’s pissed off on 1 particular day. Who f–king cares?”
“Tom Cruise is correct here FYI,” wrote Josh Gad. “Sorry/Not sorry.”