>>24668045
The interesting thing about it to me is how bound up it is in the entertainment industry. I've met one Scientologist who was heavily involved in theatre. People tend to talk about L. Ron Hubbard trying to recruit celebrities to build prestige for the religion, but few people talk about what draws entertainers to Scientology in the first place.
One theory is that a big thing in Scientology is overcoming fear and self-doubt. This makes sense because entertainers have to perform for others and that can be terrifying, they can get stage fright. Hubbard also had this whole theology of art with artists/entertainers as being part of a cosmic struggle. It does seem to work for them, like you see Tom Cruise performing these crazy, life-threatening stunts. It's a high-performance entertainer religion (example):
https://youtu.be/9L_ZdETLgzQ
