Shelly Miscavige was the queen of Scientology. No one will say where she is.

For more than three decades, David and Shelly Miscavige led the notorious Church of Scientology.

The couple, who first met in the most rigid arm of the Church of Scientology, the Sea Org, became the King and Queen of the church in 1986 when Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard passed away.

For years, Shelly was David’s right-hand woman – she was his wife, his assistant, the first lady of Scientology and she even acted as a handler to one of Scientology’s biggest names, Tom Cruise.

But over 18 years, Shelly Miscavige has been officially unaccounted for in public life. The last confirmed public sighting was in August 2007 at her father's funeral.

Suspicions began to rise within the church in 2006 when Shelly was absent from the wedding of Cruise and his partner at the time, Katie Holmes.

Throughout her time in the church, Shelly always appeared at David’s side. But at Scientology’s so-called “wedding of the century”, she was nowhere to be seen.

Leah Remini, a former Scientologist who has actively spoken out against the church for years, was one of the first to raise questions about Shelly’s absence from the $3 million destination wedding.

Scientology leader David Miscavige. Image: Getty.

When Remini questioned other Scientology members about Shelly's whereabouts during the nuptials, she was "punished for asking where the leader's wife was" and told to mind her own business.

It was Shelly's absence from the wedding and the church's subsequent reaction that ultimately led to Remini's decision to leave the religion. Upon departing in 2013, Remini filed a missing persons report for Shelly.

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) quickly responded to the report, confirming in 2013 that detectives had made contact with Shelly and her attorney, ruling the report "unfounded" and closing the case. H

However, former members, including Remini, have consistently questioned the validity of this check, stating that official confirmation was only provided by a representative, not a direct, unaided sighting by the police themselves.

Leah Remini has been outspoken about her experiences with the Church of Scientology. Image: Getty.

In numerous public statements, Remini and others who have spoken out against the church continue to raise serious concerns about Shelly's welfare.

Regarding the Church's typical defence, Remini has maintained: "'Shelly is fine and she's alive'... that's the PR line. I do not know that she is alive. I do not know that she's not being held against her will."

David Miscavige's father, Ron Miscavige, who departed Scientology back in 2012, said he had no idea where his daughter-in-law is.

"Shelly, she'll never be free," Ron said in the 60 Minutes interview. "These are pretty bad people, but they don't have a conscience and that lets them do it."

In response to the 60 Minutes episode, the Church of Scientology referred Mamamia to two blog posts.

Both posts, which can be read in full here and here, accused Channel Nine and 60 Minutes of staging scenes and manipulating facts.

"[Tara] Brown used ambush interviews, bogus phone calls, drone and helicopter flights over Church facilities. She even trespassed on Church properties, with a camera crew, of course, to create the illusion of 'news'.

Many people believe Shelly initially disappeared from the church following a disagreement with her husband.

According to multiple sources who spoke to Vanity Fair in 2014, David asked Shelly to reorganise the Sea Org leadership structure back in 2006. The project was reportedly a huge source of tension between the couple, with David rejecting every single draft his wife presented on the matter.

Eventually, Shelly is said to have released her plans without David's seal of approval.

Not long after, Shelly's former personal assistant Valerie Haney saw Shelly for the last time.

In documentary Scientology and the Aftermath, Remini interviewed Haney, who said she last saw Shelly crying and entering a vehicle outside Gold Base, Scientology's international headquarters in California.

In the documentary Scientology and the Aftermath, Leah Remini shares her experience with Scientology. Watch the trailer below.

“What [Miscavige] is doing with his wife, hiding her and not having her anywhere around, I don’t get it. That is heartless to me,” she said.

In recent years, former Scientology members and journalists alike have speculated about Shelly's whereabouts.

hile speculation on her whereabouts continues, the prevailing belief among former members is that she is housed at a highly remote and secretive Church of Spiritual Technology (CST) compound, likely in the Twin Peaks area of California.

This theory was reaffirmed in a 2025 interview by Shelly's niece, Jenna Miscavige Hill, who stated her belief that Shelly is alive, working at that base, and is "stuck in a cult."

In the most recent public development, Shelly's husband David Miscavige has been embroiled in a high-profile civil child-trafficking lawsuit brought by former Church members. Miscavige spent several months evading process servers in early 2023, with attorneys attempting service over 27 times. In a significant legal move, a federal judge ultimately ruled that Miscavige was evading service and declared him officially served in the case, which remains an ongoing legal challenge for the Church.

To this day, Shelly's whereabouts is still unknown.

This article was originally published on February 11, 2019 and has since been updated with new information.

Feature image: Vanity Fair Confidential/ID.