Nazanin Boniadi and Tom Cruise: Actress Fired as Cruises' Girlfriend Because She Lacked 'Power'? (PHOTOS)
After reports have surfaced that Nazanin Boniadi was selected to be Tom Cruise's wife by the Church of Scientology before the actor had married Katie Holmes, a number of people have come to question who the actress is and why she didn't make the final cut.
Nazanin Boniadi was allegedly selected by the Church of Scientology to become Tom Cruise's first wife, long before Katie Holmes was in the picture. Boniadi was born in Tehran, Iran in 1980 before moving to London with her family. She studied molecular science in regards to cancer treatment at the University of California, Irvine before beginning her acting career on "General Hospital" in 2007.
Boniadi allegedly attended an acting screening for a "training film" in 2004 when she was selected to meet Tom Cruise. After meeting, the couple reportedly got the sense that their marriage was to be arranged, according to a Vanity Fair interview with Maureen Orth.
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Following her role on "General Hospital," Boniadi played the love interest of Neil Patrick Harris on "How I Met Your Mother" for two years. She was later cast in a film starring Russell Crowe, "The Next Three Days," by former scientologist Paul Haggis.
Haggis claims that Boniadi was forced to quietly leave the church following her falling out with Cruise because members were unresponsive to her case.
"Naz quietly and privately resigned from the church a couple of years ago after several years of trying to handle this injustice internally, to no avail," Haggis wrote in a letter to Showbiz 411.
But what was the cause for Boniadi's rejection? Reports have stated that the actresses was "let go" from her position as Cruise's girlfriend by the church. Cruise himself was apparently not present and never ended the relationship in person. Cruise did, according sources, request the break up, however. The reason: Boniadi had too much spunk and Cruise was too clingy for her.
Cruise's affection became "overwhelming," according to the Vanity Fair report. The source said that Cruise once told Boniadi, "I've never felt this way before." Of course, strong feelings didn't stop the church from making Boniadi more ladylike. Vanity also reported that "in a month-long preparation," Boniadi was "told to lose her braces, her red highlights and her boyfriend."
Boniadi is a known human rights activist and a spokeswoman for Amnesty International. The reports claim that she was selected by Cruise after he watched audition tapes of select women.
In stating his reasoning for the break up to the church, the actor allegedly stated that Boniadi did not have enough of her "own power" as did his former wife, Nicole Kidman.
