The Popular ’00s TV Series That Starred Multiple Scientologists
Scientology is often a sore subject in Hollywood. While it has its famous poster boy in Tom Cruise, some people are violently opposed to the church because of its allegedly shady dealings.
Several celebrities have stood with the church through it all. Others have left and spoken about their times in it. However, one popular early 2000s TV series had somewhat of a Scientology convention with multiple Scientologists starring in it.
‘My Name is Earl’ was about redemption
My Name is Earl follows a small-time thief who makes a long list of all the wrongs he has done. He seeks out anyone he has ever hurt to make amends. Earl gets the idea of turning his life around after getting hit by a car while celebrating his lottery ticket win.
He loses the ticket after the accident, but once he makes good on his promise to be a better person, he finds the ticket and decides to continue on the straight and narrow path. Most episodes begin with Earl giving an overview of the premise. My Name is Earl ran for four seasons from 2005 until its sudden cancelation in 2009.
The show ended with a cliffhanger meant to be resolved in the fifth season. Much to the disappointment of fans, a resolution never happened as NBC axed the show. The cliffhanger was partially explained in another Greg Garcia sitcom Raising Hope.
Critics suspected that Scientology influenced ‘My Name is Earl’
My Name is Earl resonated with audiences and was beloved due to its premise of a thief living in idiocy while trying to make things right. The feel-good show offered the very best of what the early 2000s had to offer.
However, at some point, critics began theorizing that the church of Scientology had its teeth deep in the show. For starters, its lead actor Jason Lee was a longtime Scientologist. He even appeared in promotional material alongside other high-profile members like John Travolta and Cruise.
Ethan Suplee, who played Lee’s dim-witted brother Randy, was also a renowned Scientologist. My Name Is Earl showrunner Greg Garcia was outed by Alec Baldwin in 2008 but denied his involvement in the church. Garcia told Gawker in 2010 that the London Mirror incorrectly reported him as part of the church, insisting he was Catholic.
It also didn’t help the show’s case that it had a lot of guest stars who were so conveniently Scientologists. Some of the guest stars who practiced Scientology included Juliette Lewis and Michael Peña, both of whom are vocal Scientologists. Lewis, who is Suplee’s sister-in-law, is known for allegedly trying and failing to recruit Brad Pitt into the church.
Peña, on his end, had a now-deleted interview with the Celebrity Center, saying he got influenced into joining the church after seeing Jenna Elfman on TV stating the goodness of the church. Giovanni Ribisi had a recurring role on the show playing Ralph Mariano. He grew up in the church, and his sister Marissa was the one who introduced Lee to it while they were dating.
Some of these Scientologists have left the church
Lee, who was once one of Scientology’s prized possessions, left the church in 2016. The news came after Lee and his family relocated to Denton, Texas. People began speculating that he moved to start up a Scientology center in the area.
Lee refuted the claims in an interview with The Dentonite, saying, “Being that we don’t practice Scientology and that we aren’t particularly interested in opening religious centers in general, we have no plans to open a Scientology center.”
Ribisi and Peña still practice Scientology, with Pena crediting the church with helping him become a better actor. As for Lewis, she told The New York Times she doesn’t identify as a Scientologist. Instead, she referred to herself as “a spiritualist.”
