From the US to Australia and Europe, a new online trend spreading through has the Church of Scientology at its center and is causing a backlash.
For the “needs” of the “Scientology speedrun” trend, teenagers and young content creators organize and storm Scientology buildings around the world, trying to get as far inside as possible before being turned away by security or even the police.
What is speedrun
The term “speedrun” comes from the field of videogames and describes a player’s attempt to complete a game or track as quickly as possible. In the case of the Scientology speedrun, participants appear to treat Scientology buildings like “tracks,” running down the corridors and recording on video how far they can go before being forced to leave.
Their main goal is to go viral.
How it started
The trend began last month in Los Angeles, when an anonymous TikTok user with the nickname Swhileyy posted a video of himself running through Scientology’s main building on Hollywood Boulevard, dodging security personnel and blatantly ignoring orders to leave. The video was later taken down, but managed to gather tens of millions of views and inspire hundreds of imitators worldwide.
Since then, similar videos have been popping up on TikTok and Instagram, from New York and Canada, to Sydney, London, Amsterdam and Prague.
Participants invade alone or – usually – in groups, often wearing masks, hoods or regular disguises such as dinosaur, Minion or even Jesus Christ costumes. Some ask to meet actor Tom Cruise, one of the most famous Scientologists, while others treat the buildings like videogame tracks, talking about “level 1,” “level 2” and deeper areas of the facility.
Scientology has been busy today.
— Film The Police LA (@FilmThePoliceLA)
Some content creators even try to draw maps of buildings, based on plans published online. The videos are usually accompanied by humorous music and sound effects, an element that enhances their viral character.
they unlocked the Scientology building’s second floor
— Joey (@JoeyCheerio)
Interestingly, however, the user Swhileyy who had uploaded the first relevant video from Los Angeles, is now trying to distance himself from it all, telling The Hollywood Reporter that “copycats are overdoing it”.
An illustrative incident is that of New York, where a group of young people allegedly broke a locked door in the organization’s building in Manhattan, causing damage and injuring a staff member. Similarly, in Seattle, police announced that they had arrested people who broke into a building even with a crowbar, while in Vancouver 300 people gathered outside the organization’s building and tried to break in by kicking down the gates.
Predictably, the Church of Scientology has strongly condemned the trend, with its spokesman David Bloomberg stating that the incidents are not “speedrunning”, but organized breaches of religious facilities aimed at social media attention. In its announcements, the organization claims that there has been damage to property and that staff and visitors have been put at risk.
Scientology, founded in the 1950s by science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard, has for years remained one of the world’s most controversial religious organizations. Former members, including actress Leah Remini, have accused the organization of strict vetting practices and financial abuses, among other things, which the organization denies.
However, this particular trend does not offer social network users any additional knowledge regarding Scientology beyond a few seconds of access to the insides of buildings.
