London: Rupert Murdoch’s eldest son has denied he ever considered joining Scientology after it was rumoured that Tom Cruise tried to convert him.
According to the Daily Beast, Lachlan Murdoch was assiduously courted by the Hollywood star in 1999 while they were both living in Australia.
Cruise, who had moved to live near his then-wife Nicole Kidman’s family, was said to be determined to bring the younger Murdoch into the Scientologist fold, believing that he would soon take over his father’s media empire
Cruise reportedly travelled with Murdoch and his friend James Packer on private jets, all the while evangelising about his new religion.
While Packer was said to have been intrigued by the American faith, Murdoch remained skeptical and ultimately stayed away from Scientology, the Telegraph reported.
The Murdoch family’s relationship with Cruise’s faith has come under scrutiny after Rupert Murdoch make an unexpected foray into the media frenzy surrounding the star’s divorce from Katie Holmes.
The media mogul tweeted: “Watch Katie Holmes and Scientology story develop. Something creepy, maybe even evil, about these people.”
His unprompted tweets led to speculation that he remained angry over Cruise’s alleged courtship of his son more than a decade ago.
“He has a long memory and no love for Scientology,” a source told the Daily Beast.
In his own statement, Lachlan Murdoch denied that he ever thought about joining the group.
“I can confirm, on the record, that I have never considered or close to considered becoming a Scientologist in any way or at any time.
“The premise of the story is entirely wrong. I probably come close to sharing my father’s views about the religion, but I resist tweeting them,” he said.
Following Cruise and Kidman’s divorce in 2001, the Murdoch family publicly rallied around the Australian actress.
The older Murdoch dined with her regularly and asked her to be the godmother to his youngest daughters Grace and Chloe. Tony Blair is Grace’s godfather.
Insiders said that Murdoch’s tweets in support of Katie Holmes suggested he may be preparing to show the same backing for Cruise’s soon-to-be third ex-wife.
ANI
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.