Jerry Seinfeld Acknowledges Enrollment in ‘Very Helpful’ Scientology Course

Tom Cruise. John Travolta. Kristie Alley. Anne Archer. Giovanni Ribisi. There is no dearth of celebrities in showbiz who owe a debt to Scientology for helping them in their lives and careers. Lately, another famous name has been confirmed on the list: Comedian Jerry Seinfeld.  

An October 17 article in Best Life, an entertainment and self-help online magazine that claims more than 110 million annual unique visitors, directly tackles the enduring enigma related to Seinfeld’s association with Scientology.

The article refers to a June 2020 podcast in which Seinfeld speaks with Marc Maron, a comedy performer renowned for interviewing iconic figures such as Robin Williams, Nicole Kidman, Keith Richards and former U.S. President Barack Obama.

“Why does everyone say that you were a Scientologist once?” Maron asks Seinfeld in the podcast, titled “WTF With Marc Maron,”

Seinfeld responds by saying that he took a Scientology course in New York City in 1975, and “found it very interesting.” Asked if there was anything in the course “that changed your brain,” Seinfeld replies that the “emphasis on ethical behavior” in the instruction proved to be a game changer for him.

“I liked the emphasis on that,” he says, adding: “That was a big thing.”

The Best Life article goes on to cite a 2008 Parade magazine article according to which a high school teacher of Seinfeld’s introduced him to Scientology.

“I actually got to it from my auto mechanics teacher in high school, who was into it, and he was telling me about it,” the Best Life article quotes Seinfeld as telling Parade before recounting his own attraction to Scientology:

“Believe it or not … it’s extremely intellectual and clinical in its approach to problem-solving … . They have a lot of very good technology. That’s what really appealed to me about it. It’s not faith-based. It’s all technology. And I’m obsessed with technology.” 

In his Parade interview, Seinfeld further explained that the Scientology course played a key role in propelling his career as a comedian, although the impact was different from what some people might anticipate. 

“In my early years of stand-up, it was very helpful,” Seinfeld said, elaborating: “I took a couple of courses. One of them was in communication, and I learned some things about communication that really got my act going.”

Acknowledging that he wasn’t inherently skilled as a performer, Seinfeld revealed that he acquired valuable insights on communication and voice modulation from the course.