RHONY's Rebecca Minkoff's Scientology Ties, Explained

Season 14 of The Real Housewives of New York City was a total reboot. Viewers got to meet seven highly influential women of the Big Apple who lived in different parts of the city. The ladies all returned for Season 15, and two more women joined the reality TV series as friends—art curator Racquel Chevremont and fashion designer Rebecca Minkoff.

Prior to the Season 15 premiere, Rebecca was creating a lot of buzz when it was announced that she would join the RHONY, and it wasn't because of her fashion empire. Rebecca is a member of the controversial Church of Scientology, and she became the first Real Housewife in the history of the franchise to identify as a Scientologist.

Rebecca Minkoff's Ties To Scientology Created Buzz Among The Real Housewives Of New York City Women

Rebecca Minkoff has been in the fashion industry for nearly 20 years. In 2005, Rebecca and her brother, Uri Minkoff, launched a fashion brand that was named after the former. The fashion label features luxury clothes, handbags, shoes and accessories that can be found in hundreds of stores across the globe. So, when it was announced that Rebecca would be joining Season 15's cast of RHONY, it was exciting because viewers would get to see another "famous" person (aside from Jenna Lyons) mingling with this group of reality TV women.

The Season 15 premiere showed viewers that Rebecca knows the women in New York City through Erin Lichy. She later meets with Erin and Ubah Hassan over coffee, with the latter stating, "I know your name like I know Coca-Cola. I am so happy to meet you." Rebecca later meets the rest of the women at a gathering hosted by Brynn Whitfield. She also learns that there's a lot of drama between them as the night goes on.

In Episode 2, viewers learn more about Rebecca's personal life, including her ties to the Church of Scientology. At the very end of the episode, Rebecca, Brynn, and Jessel Taank, take a helicopter ride to the Hamptons to meet the other women. With talks of the fashion designers' affiliation to the church making its rounds on the internet, Brynn asks Rebecca what she should say to the press when questioned about her religion. At first, Rebecca tells her to say, "No comment."

However, Brynn tells her that because she and Jessel are publicists, that answer wasn't going to fly and continues to demand an answer from Rebecca, who replies, "I just tell people, 'If you're curious, read a book.' That's it.'"

In a confessional, Brynn expressed that Rebecca's responses were too reserved and felt like they were coming from ChatGPT. She added, "I feel like I'm talking to a door-to-door salesman or someone who's trying to sell me snake oil." From the looks of it, Brynn's thoughts on Rebecca's religious beliefs may play out in further episodes and cause tension within the group.

In fact, in the same episode, Rebecca was aware that media outlets were going to report on her being a member of Scientology, which is known for having several celebrity worshipers, including Madonna, Tom Cruise, John Travolta, and the now imprisoned, Danny Masterson.

Rebecca's Family Is Said To Be Powerful Within The Church Of Scientology

In RHONY, Rebecca Minkoff shared with the women on their helicopter ride that the British tabloid Daily Mail was going to publish a piece on the fashion designer's ties to Scientology. Within the article, RHONY viewers learned shocking things about Rebecca's family and just how powerful they are within the church.

The Daily Mail article shared that Rebecca's affiliation to the Church of Scientology began with her parents, Sue and Dr. David Minkoff. The article describes her family as being "powerful" members within the church. Quoting the Scientology blog, The Underground Bunker, it revealed that the Minkoff family "was even awarded 'Diamond Meritorious' status" for donating $5 million.

In addition, the Daily Mail piece brings up a 1995 scandal that linked both the church and Rebecca's father to the death of a Scientologist named Lisa McPherson. According to the outlet, after Lisa was involved in a car accident, she was taken to the hospital for treatment, but the church convinced her not to seek medical care. Instead, they took her to a hotel where Scientologist members cared for her, although her health continued to deteriorate. On day 17, the members phoned Dr. Minkoff after Lisa "went into a catatonic state." Although he urged them to take her to a hospital, they refused. Dr. Minkoff was the one to pronounce Lisa dead.

After a wrongful death lawsuit was filed by McPherson's family, Dr. Minkoff was ordered to pay $100,000.

Even more damning for Rebecca is the Daily Mail discussing her long-time relationship with now disgraced actor Danny Masterson. According to the publication, Danny, who is also a Scientologist and the fashion designer's friendship goes back years. In 2023, the That '70s Show actor was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for rapes he committed in 2003. The victims were members of the Church of Scientology who were allegedly told by the church not to discuss what had happened to them.

What Has Rebecca Said About Being A Part Of The Controversial Religion?

The Church of Scientology has been the center of controversy for decades, as critics of the church have compared it to a cult. Although Rebecca did not go into detail about being a Scientologist to the women of RHONY (which she might in future episodes), she has spoken about being a member to other outlets.

In an interview with The New York Times in 2021, Rebecca wanted to clear the air about the misconceptions people may have about Scientology, but more specifically, she wanted to answer people's questions about how devout she is within the church, as she identifies as both Jewish and a Scientologist.

"Immediately, you hear that I pray to L. Ron Hubbard. I study it, I take classes and that's the extent of it, and it's helped me stay centered."

She added, "I don't have all the answers. When I needed someone, it was a place for me to go to get some answers."

In an interview with The Post, Rebecca continued to defend her practices, stating, "[Scientology] has helped me personally. It's helped me professionally. It's helped me weather a lot of stress. That's what I use it for. It's a method I apply to help me with stress."

New episodes of The Real Housewives of New York City air on Bravo every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET and are available to stream on Peacock the next day.

For more Real Housewives coverage, visit our Reality TV Hub.

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