Some people just beg for nine-figure lawsuits.
New assertions that Tom Cruise has risen to the second-in-command of the Church of Scientology and that some believe Suri Cruise is the product of a sperm donation from Scientology’s late founder L. Ron Hubbard are among the bizarre claims author Andrew Morton makes in “Tom Cruise, An Unauthorized Biography.”
The book, set for publication in the U.S. on January 15, also claims Tom Cruise’s next mission is to recruit David and Victoria Beckham into the church, and that the church threatened to blackmail Nicole Kidman by revealing graphic details of her sex life with Cruise if she spoke out about Scientology after their divorce.
According to the UK’s Daily Mail, Morton says Cruise’s staff is all scientologists vetted and hired by the church, and Scientology leader David Miscavige ordered staff to plant a field of wildflowers at a Scientology base after Cruise confided in him his fantasy to run through a field of flowers with Katie Holmes.
The new book also alleges that Scientology officials exert enormous influence over Tom Cruise’s personal relationships and career decisions, and says that although it is not officially stated anywhere, Cruise is the de-facto second-in-command of the entire Church of Scientology, its #2 behind Miscavige.
But the most shocking claim in the book, according to the Daily Mail, is Morton’s preposterous account of how little Suri Cruise, 20 months, was conceived.
Morton compares Suri Cruise‘s conception to the horror film Rosemary’s Baby and claims that members of a “fanatical” sect of Scientologists known as “Sea Org.” believe Katie Holmes was impregnated not by Cruise, but with a sperm donation from dead Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.
Tom Cruise’s longtime attorney, the Hollywood power lawyer Bert Fields, has vehemently denied the book’s claims, calling it a “pack of lies.”
“It’s a boring, poorly researched book by a man who never talked to anyone involved in Tom Cruise’s life or anyone close to him,” Fields said.
Morton is best known for his 1992 expose about Princess Diana. His bio of Cruise is not being published in the United Kingdom, interestingly, due in part to the U.K.’s libel laws, which are considered stricter than U.S. laws.