Louis Theroux's best documentaries, from Behind Bars to Extreme Love
The Church of Scientology, the religious movement founded in Los Angeles in the Fifties, has picked up a bad rap, being described by some outsiders and ex-members as a cult and a pseudoreligion. And in My Scientology Movie, Theroux does his best to investigate the secretive organisation, but even he fails to get a proper look inside. Although the film involves dozens of metaphorical – and literal – doors being slammed in Theroux's face, and The Church of Scientology never cooperates with Theroux, the documentary nevertheless manages to paint an illuminating picture of the religion: he speaks to ex-members about their experiences in the church, and Theroux and his team actually start to be surveilled while they're making the film.
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Daily Mirror
25-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Ana de Armas recalls screaming and running for her life on set of new movie
Cuban-Spanish actress Ana de Armas has two major blockbusters coming out this summer - but she was scared for her life on the set of one of them that filmed in Australia Ana de Armas has revealed she was left screaming and running for her life on the set of her latest film. The 37-year-old Cuban-Spanish actress has the lead role in new action film Ballerina - itself a spin-off of the Keanu Reeves fronted John Wick film series. The new movie sees Ana playing a character named Eve Macarro, who was training as a ballerina before falling into a world of espionage and peril. While promoting the new film, Ana also shared anecdotes from the set of another action film she stars in. She is among the cast of Ron Howard's survival thriller Eden - which was initially released in 2024 but is set to be released in the UK in July. The action flick, which also stars Jude Law, Vanessa Kirby and Sydney Sweeney, was filmed in Australia - but the set was frequently invaded by scaly visitors. Ana has explained that a snake catcher was on hand at all times to remove such unwanted pests. Speaking to Stellar Magazine, Ana revealed that the cast and crew would run screaming at the warning of reptiles. She recalled: "I remember at random times on set, people just screaming, 'Snake!' "Stopping the take right away – whatever was happening, whoever was talking – we literally dropped everything and ran away, waiting for the guy to come with the stick and take the snake out." She added: "But I think we were fine... no accidents happened." While Ana has a busy summer ahead of film releases ahead of her, she has been attracting even more interest from fans in recent months as rumours swirl that she is dating Tom Cruise. The pair have been spotted out for dinner together and Tom has even flown the actress around in helicopters. Ana is no stranger to dating high profile men - having been married to Spanish model Marc Clotet from 2011 until 2013, dated Ben Affleck from early 2020 until late 2021, and more recently she was linked to the stepson of Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel. But she has reportedly been warned about getting close to 62-year-old Tom. After they were spied seemingly enjoying a Valentine's meal together earlier this year, a source insisted to People that the pair were merely "discussing potential collaborations down the line." They added that the pair "appeared to have no romantic connection, just friends." Fans have been left unconvinced, however, and many have taken to social media to comment about the apparent bond between the Hollywood stars - while also expressing concerns about Tom's dramatic, headline-grabbing past. He has not had the best luck on the romantic front - having been married three times, with each marriage resulting in divorce. He has also been linked to the controversial religion Scientology. He reportedly joined the Church of Scientology in 1986 after allegedly being introduced by his first wife, Mimi Rogers. The organisation has been slammed as a cult by many and it was invented by science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard in 1954. The secretive society reportedly sees members unlock different levels within the organisation by paying certain amounts of money to rise up through the ranks - while also allegedly handing over personal details. Many who have escaped the organisation have claimed they have been followed and intimidated by other members. It has been suggested that Tom's dedication to the organisation sparked the collapse of his marriage to his second wife, Nicole Kidman - however the Aussie star cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for her request for divorce when they split in 2001.
Metro
23-05-2025
- Metro
It's the 20th anniversary of Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah Winfrey's sofa
It's been two decades since one of the most iconic (or perhaps notorious) moments in pop culture history: Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah Winfrey's sofa. The interview has become a shorthand for celebrity eccentricity for good reason. For those who don't remember, the interview aired on May 23, 2005, around the same time Cruise was first making negative headlines for his association with Scientology. He went on The Oprah Winfrey Show – then one of the biggest talk shows in the world – and discussed his new romance with Katie Holmes, whom he wed in 2006 and split from in 2012. Cruise entered the studio to thunderous applause and was visibly ecstatic as he made his way towards Oprah. He was unusually animated, full of energy, and smiling broadly – something that was very unlikely for the actor. As Oprah asked about his relationship with actress Holmes, Cruise responded with uncontained enthusiasm. At one point, he stood on the couch, knelt on it, punched the air, and later jumped up and down. Oprah laughed and said, 'You're gone!' obviously concerned but trying to play along with whatever was happening. Cruise then repeatedly professed his love for Holmes, calling her 'extraordinary' and saying he had never felt this way before. He grabbed Oprah's hands and pulled her from her chair, continuing his excited display. The audience responded with laughter, applause, and some visible confusion, but it was the virality of the clip afterwards that truly stoked fan reaction. YouTube had only recently come to exist in 2005, and the clip of Cruise was one of the platform's first-ever viral videos, a stark contrast to the likes of TikTok in 2025, where there's a new viral trend every other day. At the time, with so much less content on the web, viral moments lasted a lot longer (see: 2007's Charlie Bit My Finger), and Cruise's strange interview became the definitive celebrity moment of the year. News broadcasts, entertainment shows, and late-night comedians latched onto Cruise's bizarre, uncharacteristic energy levels, with the couch-jumping mocked on Saturday Night Live, South Park, and talk shows for weeks. His exaggerated declaration of love for his new girlfriend felt unrelatable or even suspicious to some viewers, sparking speculation about Cruise's authenticity, mental state, and ties to Scientology. Some even wondered if the Church of Scientology had arranged his match with Holmes. A recent Reddit thread unpacks the cultural impact of the interview, with one user asking on r/popculturechat: 'How big of a deal was the Tom Cruise incident on The Oprah Winfrey show at the time?' Other users quickly responded to assure the original poster that it was seemingly all anyone could talk about that year. YugisMillenniumBSBcd wrote: 'It was massive! It was one of the last big pop culture things before youtube really took off. Everyone was talking about it without having actually seen it, so people thought it was more shocking than it really was. It didn't help we all knew he's got several screws loose with his Xenu worshipping BS, so the idea of him jumping around the Oprah set like Top Gun: Kangaroo was 10000% believable.' amomentintimebro agreed: 'Oh HUGE. I remember watching it and the media storm after. He came off as a total crazy person and everyone was super weirded out.' Aware-Impression8527 chimed in: 'HUGE. There was no social media so celebrities were still kind of remote and moments held more weight (and didn't happen every minute of the day). He had this reputation for being so straight and restrained so to see him jump up and down on a couch was wild.' In the years since the couch jump was seen around the world, Cruise and Holmes have divorced, and it's believed he's estranged from their shared teenage daughter, Suri, who recently graduated in New York. She remains close with her mother, though, having dropped the 'Cruise' surname, as she now goes by Suri Noelle. It was previously claimed that the 46-year-old Dawson's Creek star filed for divorce from Cruise to protect Suri from Scientology, with Suri no longer a practising member of the organisation. According to The Sun, visits between Cruise and his daughter ceased around 2013, although he previously claimed he 'never cut [her] out' of his life. More Trending Cruise, currently rumoured to be dating Ana de Armas, also shares adopted children Bella and Connor with ex-wife Nicole Kidman, to whom he was married from 1990 to 2001. Away from the dramatics of fatherhood, Cruise has managed to rehabilitate his public image. The Mission: Impossible actor, who recently reprised his role of Ethan Hunt for The Final Reckoning, has even been called 'the last movie star' by those who will forgive just about anything from a man who does his own stunts, whether it be hanging from a plane or plunging to the depths of the ocean (or whatever else he does). Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Netflix fans praise 'suspenseful' dark comedy perfect for Bank Holiday binge watching MORE: Nicole Kidman's Amazon Prime show branded 'comedically bad' as season 2 drops MORE: Pregnant news anchor hosts three-hour show after going into labour live on air
Press and Journal
15-05-2025
- Press and Journal
Review: Louis Theroux faces dad's critique of Aberdeen as 'miserable' on first visit to city
Louis Theroux is an effortlessly entertaining raconteur. He had the audience at Aberdeen Music Hall captivated, and occasionally roaring with laughter, as the veteran interviewer became interviewee on Wednesday night. The TV legend went from discussing his experiences with real-life monsters like Jimmy Savile and Fred Phelps to opening up about his ambitions to write his own sitcom during the near-two-hour tour de force. Fans of the 'complete misfit in every way' certainly got their money's worth, treated to a range of insights and observations on everything from the rise of the Far Right to 'cancel culture' – as well as a few pretty decent impressions. But Theroux maybe got more than he bargained for when interviewer Fiona Stalker went back through the generations, bringing his dad's words back to haunt him. Paul Theroux, a famed travel writer and novelist, apparently once deemed Aberdeen the 'most miserable and unfriendly place' he had ever lived. Much worse, in fact, than London. Taking it in good spirits, Theroux vowed to tell his dad he 'was so wrong', while explaining that this sort of put-down was the author's 'brand' at the time. He added: 'He's quite a nice man a lot of the time.' Perhaps still eager to atone, the TV star would later make sure to commend Aberdeen-born singer Annie Lennox too. 'What a great voice, a great ambassador…', he mused earnestly. But there was, of course, much more to the show than this. My earliest memories of Louis Theroux include him being slammed to the mat in the WCW training camp as he explored the world of American pro-wrestling during one of his Weird Weekends in the late 1990s. I've watched pretty much everything of his since then, read his books and listened to his podcast in lockdown. I've even listened to the All The Way Theroux podcast, which goes through his catalogue of shows in detail. So yes, I am a fan. And there was a welcoming buzz in the air, with the sense that so many in the sold-out audience were happy just to spend some time in the great man's company. Theroux revealed how he initially hoped to become a sitcom writer before becoming a documentary-maker, and it appears that, even decades later, the dream is still alive. When asked how he sees his career evolving in the next 25 years, Theroux said he could see himself spending more time behind the camera… Maybe as a drama or sitcom writer. Avid Theroux followers like myself will have heard him discuss his time with Jimmy Savile a few times by now. He has his doubts over whether he managed to show what sort of man the predator really was during a Weird Weekend with him. But it's still a fascinating subject to hear him elaborate on, as he tells us how he and his crew managed to capture at least a hint of the steely TV presenter's dark side. Even all these years on, there's still some regret that he might have been 'hoodwinked'. Theroux was in Aberdeen as part of the Ultimate Masterclass Festival, which tonight brings comedian James Corden to the Music Hall. Host Ryan Crighton explained these events had been arranged not to 'bring celebrities to Aberdeen and slap them with a bus gate fine', but to usher folk into the city centre. They had been hoping for 'busy bars and restaurants' as people made a night of it. Having combined the show with a first visit to the amazing new Filipino restaurant Kultura on Belmont Street, I think it must have worked! Review: An Inspector Calls makes for a thrilling night of intrigue at HMT in Aberdeen Review: Rowdy Aberdeen fans celebrate Shane MacGowan as Christmas comes to city on Easter Sunday
