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Will Smith has spent a good deal of time defending his Scientology-based school from claims that it’s… a Scientology school. You could see how people might think that. This weekend Smith repeated that although the school has some Scientology-based teaching methods, he himself is not a Scientologist.
Unlike a lot of other celebrities, Smith actually seemed a little open and willing to talk about it. He also confirmed that he spoke with the anti-Scientology group Anonymous – and even the group seems to be slightly less skeptical about Smith.
This year, news broke that Will had funded a school in suburban Los Angeles that used one of Scientology’s study programs. It seemed like Will and Jada were making a statement. But they didn’t actually make a statement.
Monday night, I ran into Mr. and Mrs. Smith at the premiere of “Lakeview Terrace,” which Will has produced with partner James Lassiter. Jada was there, too. And here’s the thing about Will and Jada: they are immensely likable. They are incredibly gracious … I told him I’d heard he’d given a press conference to the group called Anonymous, which protests Scientology.
“Not exactly a press conference, but I did talk to them,” he said. Mind you, Will had just gone to the buffet and was carrying a plate of food. This was up at the swanky new Empire Hotel rooftop following the premiere of “Lakeview,” which stars Samuel L. Jackson and Kerry Washington. So, what’s the story? Is Will a Scientologist? “I am not,” he told me. The school is using one of Scientology’s teaching tools, but Will said, “You can take different parts of things you like and put them all together.”
This is similar to what he told the Anonymous people (who remain, I presume, unknown). In their recent press release, the group said, “We appreciate Will’s interest in our efforts and his openness in speaking with us directly. It shows his concern both as a parent and educator.
“Anonymous is hopeful that NVLA will take the great strides necessary to correct for the deficiencies in Scientology’s Study Tech, or abandon them altogether. We will be keeping an eye on the situation to make sure that NVLA lives up to the goals Will Smith has for it, which include keeping the Church of Scientology out of the classrooms.”
[From Fox News via the Huffington Post]
I’m not sure if I buy that reasoning, but I think it says a lot about Will Smith that he actually spoke to Anonymous. I have yet to hear about anyone else doing that. I’ve never been able to figure out where Will stands on the Scientology issue. If he’s such a fan of it, why doesn’t he join the cult? Some people say he has, but again – if he had, why lie about it? Sure, it’s not good for his career, but it’s debatable whether it’d be significantly worse than the associations he already has with them.
Either way, it does speak better of Smith that he spoke with Anonymous and doesn’t get all haughty about Scientology like BFF Tom Cruise.
Here’s Will, Jada , and Caleb Pinkett at the New York Premiere of ‘Lakeview Terrace’ yesterday. Images thanks to WENN.
Written by JayBird
Posted in Angelina Jolie, Controversies, Cynthia Nixon, Education, Scott Storch, William Hurt
20 Responses to “Will Smith still denying he’s a Scientologist; speaks with Anonymous”
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I thik that the Anons who spoke to him came away more or less believing that HE sincerely believes he’s not running a scieno school. Whether it actually is, or might become, is another issue.
And I agree that the biggest sign that argues for Will’s non-scieno status is the fact that he came out and spoke to Anons. It wasn’t a press conference or a scripted speech or a ‘handling’. He came out, listened to concerns, spoke his thoughts.
A straight-flying scientologist would never have done that; scientologists are expressly forbidden to talk to critics in such a way. So if he has been drawn into the cult, they haven’t gotten to his brain and his personality… yet. -
Yeah, if Will was a practicing member of CoS, he would have made some reference to how Anonymous was somehow like the Nazis.
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The thing is that there are many people in Scientology who everyone would agree are “nice guys”. Many have joined for the express reason that they want to help people. Of course it never, ever works out that way. Will Smith, like them, is probably a genuinely nice guy. However there is zero doubt in my mind that he is a Scientologist. His wife has been one for years and there is no way he can avoid not becoming one. It just goes against the rules of the cult (hence Tom Cruise dumping Nicole Kidman). Another thing is that Scientologist lie, even the nice ones. It is encouraged and accepted practice in the “churh” to lie to “WOGS” which is L.Ron Hubbard’s racist term for any non-scientologist. Scientologists are “homo-novis” and are superior beings; the rest of us are “saps” (short for homo-sapiens) and need to be handled and lied to to keep us out of their way as they continue their mission to clear the planet. Check out ToryMagoo44’s channel on you tube. Super nice lady who was in Scientology for 30 years and woke up in 2000 but who also did her share of handling critics while she was under mind control of scientology.
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Maybe Will has been appointed the friendly face of the CoS. Since Tom failed dismally in the same role. I still think he’s in.
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what’s up with jada’s face? it looks frozen.
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people get “haughty” about the “religion” because they are attacked because of it. i don’t know where the writer of this article is from but in the US supposedley (sp) a person is free to worship as they please.
as for Will Smith why would he deny being one if he is one? it is not like they are cutting the heads of goats.i went to a catholic highschool but i am Baptist….so what?
i agree with Will you can take some elements of the religion and use it in schooling or whatever it doesn’t make him a member of it …he has no reason to lie. i mean if he “admits” to being one would he suddenly (sp?)wake up poor? i think not…………
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I think Will Smith is one of those honest type people, if he was COS he would be out there defending it. Also he would make it cool for lots of his fans to join.
COS wishes he would join so they can get some popular legitimacy.
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- jlow, what’s up with jada’s face? it looks frozen.
She is thinking “what if I kill Will and Charlize, would the O.J. defense work for me?”
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Damn that man’s utter charmingness! (sic)
I’m with Anon on this - he’d pass a lie-detector/e-meter because he probably does believe what he says. However, no matter how lovely a Sciento is, their “natural” reaction is to launch a counter-attack, even a very mild one. We had it on this site for long enough.
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I think the real issue here is that Will Smith doesn’t believe Scientology is evil. He like many many Americans thinks of it as just another religion. I doubt that he spends as much time as most of us researching why Scientology is evil. If a friend of his is a Scientologist, then thats fine with him. For him its just a matter of being open minded.
And since he considers himself open minded, he doesn’t see the need to distance himself from it. He just figures that he can learn something from it the way he could learn something from any other religion.
He has been very clear about not being a Scientologist, but I think that because he sees it as just another religion, he is hesitant to demonize it or suggest that there is something wrong with being a part of it.
His attitude reminds me a great deal of Steven Spielberg’s attitude about it during the filming of the War of the Worlds. No one wants to cast dispersions on someone else’s religious beliefs no matter if they agree with them or not.
And if they feel there is something to be learned from it then thats all to the better.
It doesn’t make Scientology any less evil. Nor, does it make him a member of the cult. It just means that he doesn’t believe its evil.
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I don’t know jack about Jada Smith, but if she is indeed a Sci, then Will Smith is in a tight corner, and no matter his doubts, may be forced to play the supportive non-member. The Anons who spoke to him reportedly gave him quite a bit of info on the darker points of CoS and some of it was definitely new to him. You have to hope he’ll read up, clue in, and get his family the hell away from the influence. Of course, he’d more than likely risk his marriage if he did..
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@cmoody - I think you’re spot on with your reasoning - makes a great deal of sense as far as WS’s concerned. Which ties in with my own opinion about him, that while he may be very business savvy and a nice guy etc, he’s not the sharpest tool in the box.
Otherwise, he needs a really, really good excuse for not being up to speed on the realities of scientology.
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Will Smith is a Scientologist, and is just protecting his career. In one of his interviews he said he is son is “Sensitive something, can see events before they happen in the news” what a bunch of crap. Scientologists believe in that crap, and Scientologists are a vicious cult. Shame on Will Smith for sidestepping his connection from his Scientology based school. Scientologists have used numerous valid sounding programs they created for years to enroll people in Scientology, it is all over the Internet. That is why I don’t beleive Will Smith conversation with Anonymous was genuine, he probably called them squirrels as soon as they left.
Good luck Anonymous. -
Now that Tom Cruise’s career is in the toilet, Will Smith is very, very carefull about his assoc with Scientology.
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Doesn’t religion require belief in a god of some sort? Why is scientology a religion? Do they pray to that Ron Hubbard guy?
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@Raye there’s just one problem. Plenty of people believe that they or someone they know can sense things before they happen and they aren’t Scientologists. They are just people with their own belief systems.
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@Nina
You are correct. Scientology does not believe in a god(s) or God(s). Its God is money. It’s only reason for relentlessly pursuing being classified as religion is for Tax Exempt status. End of story.They have been denied religious status (and are in fact considered a dangerous cult) in Germany, France, Belgium, Canada, Russia, etc…Google “Operation Snow White” or visit XenuDOTnet if you want to find out how they blackmailed the US government into granting them tax exempt status as a religion. This is one major reason that the group Anonymous is protesting against them.
L.Ron Hubbard is considered infallible, though, by Scientologists. Everything he ever said or wrote is considered the one and only truth. They call him “the source”. All of the organizations across the world have an office setup like his original office awaiting his return from “sector 2″.
Scientology….its worse than you think!
Check it out on the internet, youtube, etc.. to find out for yourself.
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Scientology is a scam. “Believers” either get scammed or benefit from it. It’s just that simple. L. Ron Hubbard was a manic depressive who escaped from a mental hospital in the mid west, traveled to California and formed the whole scamming corporation. Check the history. These people squelch their opponents like the Spanish Inquisition.
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But why Will Smith has spent a good deal of time defending his Scientology-based school? I think he just want to protect his career..
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Did Anonymous give him a complimentary Guy Fawkes mask?
Kidding aside, I do think that in addition to being very smart about protecting his career, Will Smith does strike me as a reasonable and fair-minded person.
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