Leah Remini Shares Update On Daughter Following Scientology Exit
Leah Remini has been a controversial figure for her decades of involvement in the Church of Scientology. The 51-year-old left the group in July 2013 after 30 years as a member. When she spoke to People a month later, Remini explained her decision to leave. "I believe that people should be able to question things. I believe that people should value family, and value friendships, and hold those things sacrosanct," she said. "It wouldn't matter what it was, simply because no one is going to tell me how I need to think, no one is going to tell me who I can, and cannot, talk to." Essentially, it sounds like she wanted more control over her own life.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Remini's mother became a Scientologist in the 1970s. Remini, herself, rose through the ranks all the way up to Operating Thetan Level Five, which meant she had only three more levels to climb before reaching the highest spiritual rank. Remini's husband, Angelo Pagan, joined his wife in leaving the church in 2013. The couple was also joined by their daughter, Sofia Pagan, and fans may be interested to learn how the 17-year-old is faring today.
Leah Remini believes leaving Scientology made her daughter 'strong-minded'
In a recent interview with People, Leah Remini shared that if she and her family hadn't walked away from Scientology, her daughter Sofia Pagan "wouldn't be the strong-minded kid she is now, who, hopefully, is going to make some positive change in the world." Remini added, "I'm always saying to her and her friends, 'I hope you are going to take all this genius and get your asses into Congress.' That's how you're going to change things."
According to People, Sofia is slated to start college in Fall 2022 and will likely attend a school on the East Coast. Remini recalled to the outlet, "My friend Sherry, who also left the church and has a son in college now, recently texted me, 'Aren't we so jealous of our kids?' We wish we had what we've given them."
This isn't the first time Remini has praised her daughter. In January 2021, she appeared on "The Drew Barrymore Show," where she said that her daughter was the one who "inspired" her to pay attention to relevant social issues, like racial inequality and climate change. Remini told Barrymore, "It makes me so proud to know that she's somebody who cares about what's happening in the world."