Jerrod Carmichael mocks Tom Cruise, Scientology at Golden Globes

Article content

Comedian Jerrod Carmichael took a page from past host Ricky Gervais’ playbook when he skewered Tom Cruise during the Golden Globes Tuesday night.

Article content

Carmichael was introducing Cruise’s Top: Gun Maverick co-stars Glen Powell and Jay Ellis when he appeared on stage holding three trophies.

Article content

“Backstage I found these three Golden Globes Awards that Tom Cruise returned. I’m just a host briefly or whatever, but I have a pitch,” Carmichael said, referring to the star handing back his statuettes in 2021 to protest the fact that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had no Black members. “Maybe we take these three things and exchange them for the safe return of Shelly Miscavige.”

Shelly, the wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige, allegedly hasn’t been seen in public in over a decade. Actress Leah Remini, a past member who is now a vocal critic of the organization, asked about her whereabouts this past November, tweeting: “WHERE IS SHELLY???”

Article content

The Los Angeles Police Department responded via a press release, saying the case was closed.

“In 2014, Los Angeles Police Department detectives assigned to the Missing Persons Unit (MPU) went to Shelly Miscavige’s location and personally made contact with her and her attorney. Detectives found her to be alive and safe, and subsequently closed the missing persons investigation.”

Remini also spoke about Shelly’s alleged disappearance in a 2015 20/20 interview, revealing that she questioned her absence at Cruise and his former wife Katie Holmes’ 2006 wedding.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Remini said that when she asked officials at the ceremony where Shelly was, they repeatedly brushed her off.

In 2012, attorneys claiming to represent Shelly said she had opted to step away from public life.

Article content

Remini took to social media to respond to Carmichael’s viral takedown. “Thank you Jerrod Carmichael,” she wrote. “Where is Shelly??”

Article content

The crowd reacted with an audible gasps, but on social media his “no f—- given” comments worried some viewers.

“Did he just mention Shelly Miscavige?! Will we see Jerrod Carmichael ever again?!” one Twitter user jokingly asked, while another warned, “Tomorrow, I predict Jerrod will disappear.”

Article content

Cruise, who is expected to be nominated for an Academy Award for Maverick, won his first Globe in 1990 for his role in Born on the Fourth of July. He also scored awards for Jerry Maguire in 1997 and Magnolia in 2000.

The 60-year-old action star famously handed back his gongs to protest the Globes’ racism scandal in 2021 after a Los Angeles Times expose revealed the group had no Black members.

Carmichael confronted the lingering controversy head-on in his opening monologue.

“I’ll tell you why I’m here. I’m here because I’m Black. This show, the Golden Globe Awards, did not air last year because the Hollywood Foreign Press Association — which I won’t say were a racist organization, but they didn’t have a single Black member until George Floyd died (in 2020). So do with that information what you will.”

[email protected]

RECOMMENDED VIDEO