Can Will Smith Be Saved From The Church Of Scientology?
The internets are buzzing* with intel that Scientology's leader David Miscavige, feeling cornered and provoked, has started a multi-front offensive. What this entails is still up for debate, but one thing seems consistently obvious, Scientology must recruit a likable face to help them detract from their recent spate of negative press.
Could that someone be Will Smith? All signs point to yes, and if you think about it, what better person to replace Tom Cruise as spokesperson? Smith has surpassed Cruise in both popularity and likability, having ranked as the 5th most likable celeb in a 2006 Harris poll.
Coincidentally, that same year a Gallup poll showed that Cruise was the least likable of well known celebs, with a 51% unfavorable rating. Cruise, has in fact become a liability, having destroyed his successful relationship with Hollywood powerhouses Sumner Redstone and director Steven Spielberg by using his celeb status to proselytize Scientology, over promoting his films.
Not only is Will Smith a box office favorite, he has been a positive role model for many young people with his broad-base appeal. Smith, with his feet firmly planted in both the hip-hop community and the acting community has become the rare crossover entertainer. When you throw in his humble, and affable personality, this makes him a valuable asset to any group seeking his endorsement. Will Smith is grounded in the street, but able to reach Bel Air with ease and perhaps most importantly, he has soul. In the deepest and truest sense. When he pines for what might have been between he and Rosario Dawson in Men In Black II, it was a throw away moment, but one that rings so true.
Will's rise to prominence is more than just timely, it's as though the hands of fate have smiled upon him. Just as our society has positively shifted towards truly and finally accepting an African American as a potential leader for this nation, we are presented with the meteoric rise and popularity of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. It's not surprising then, that the other most powerful entity in America, Hollywood, would also have a parallel leader emerge who mirrors those qualities which people admire in the man who may become our next president.
