An ex-scientologist reveals the 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' actor narrowly escaped death when he joined the popular program for drug abusers within the church in the early 1990s.

• Aug 9, 2019

AceShowbiz - Brad Pitt was recruited by the church of Scientology decades ago, but left it after undergoing a dangerous drug detox within the church, according to ex-Scientologist Sam Domingo. The former daughter-in-law of famed opera singer Placido Domingo reveals the actor joined the church's popular method for drug abusers called the "purification rundown" in the 1990s.

Sam, who claims she was a member of the church for 22 years before she broke free in 2004, tells Radar Online that the 55-year-old movie star narrowly escaped death when he took part in the drug detox program within the church. "Brad was recruited in the 1990s during the time he and Juliette Lewis did a movie together," Sam says. "That's when he was put on the purification rundown."

The program, also called the "sweat box" by the church's members, is described as "a program where they basically load you up with vitamins and you sit in the sauna and sweat for five hours a day." Sam says the method has become "dangerous," as "at least four kids have died on these programs."

She adds, "Brad was doing the same one! He was in the sweat box." Sam believes the purification rundown is what led Brad to leaving the church years ago. "He left! They weren't able to keep Brad," she says.

According to Sam, Juliette, who has publicly admitted to battling a drug addiction and a mental health condition in the past, took the same "ethics handling" course within Scientology with her in the early 1990s. Sam says, "Juliette got in trouble because she got back into drugs." She goes on sharing, "She was in my course group refusing to study. She put her feet on the table and refused."

Juliette has claimed she has been sober since she was 22. The "Wayward Pines" alum is still a Scientologist.