The Profit - Latest News

After the film's successful, eight-week test run at the Clearwater Cinema Café, the filmmakers studied the survey results and went to work on the final cut.

But even as they did, the Church of Scientology launched another attack, this time through the courts. The Scientologists, through their lead in-house counsel Kendrick Moxon, attempted to link the film to the Lisa McPherson wrongful death suit when they instigated numerous court actions involving discovery of the film's production records

Lisa McPherson was a Scientologist who, in 1995, died after seventeen days under the cult's "care." http://whyaretheydead.net/room174.html According to court documents in the case, she had been locked in a room, tied down and force fed drugs with a turkey baster.

In their legal brief, Scientology claimed that the purpose for making "The Profit" was that it was an attempt to influence the Pinellas Country, Florida jury pool in the wrongful death case. This statement was made despite the fact that Scientology spokesman Ben Shaw had previously claimed that "The Profit" had nothing to do with the Church.(click on TV news shows and hear for yourself how many times Scientology told reporters that the film had nothing to do with them)

Judge Robert Beach viewed "The Profit" and then wrote a court order banning the film from WORLDWIDE distribution until the wrongful death case was decided. In the judgement of legal scholars, this constitutes prior restraint of free speech, which is forbidden by the Constitution of the United States. As far as we know, this ruling is the first of its kind in the history of this country.

In April, 2002, Robert Minton, Executive Producer and principal source of funding for "The Profit," who had been Scientology's staunchest critic, suddenly "switched sides" and testified in court on behalf of the Church in the wrongful death claim. In a failed attempt to disqualify Ken Dandar, the attorney representing Lisa McPherson's family, Minton backed up Scientology's wild allegations that "The Profit" had been made for the sole purpose of influencing the jury pool in the wrongful death case.

Peter Alexander, writer and director of the film, also testified. His testimony clearly proved that at the time the film was begun, the Lisa McPherson trial was scheduled to be concluded MONTHS before the film was scheduled for completion, so there was no way it could have been intended to influence the jury pool. Indeed, Scientology's attorneys' notes revealed during the trial that it was the Church's goal to ensure that "The Profit", "never saw the light of day."

In her final ruling on this 40 day hearing, Judge Susan Schaefer accused Mr. Minton of perjury, and recommended that the Pinellas County States Attorney investigate the matter.

Will "The Profit" surmount these obstacles and ever "see the light of day?"

There are theaters out there who have contacted us who want to run this film, and audiences waiting to see it. Not a day goes by that we don't get a request for a video copy or a DVD of the film. Some day, we hope to be able to honor those requests.

For more background see "Why all the controversy?"

Opening Night

Coverage of The Profit's opening night in Clearwater, Florida (in Real Video format).