'Tom Cruise Wanted To Be A Catholic Priest' School Friend Claims

Tom Cruise maybe one of the most famous followers of the Church of Scientology on the planet, but according to a school friend, as a teenager the actor wanted to become a Catholic priest, but changed his mind after allegedly being asked “not to return,” to St Francis Seminary school after he was caught with alcohol.

In a new interview, school friend Shane Dempler, who studied at the school with Cruise from 1976 to 77, claimed the All You Need Is Kill star thought seriously about devoting his life to the Catholic church.

''He had a very strong Catholic faith,” he told the New York Daily News.

''We went to Mass, spent time in the chapel and enjoyed hearing stories from the priests. We thought the priests had a great lifestyle and we were really interested in priesthood."

He claimed: ''In truth. we were too young to make that decision.''

According to the school friend, Tom was a bit of a tearaway in his youth and got into trouble with the school when he was caught with alcohol.

''I tossed about six, most broke, but we managed to get a couple and hide them in the nearby woods,” he explained.

''The priests didn't even realise until some of the other boys found out about our plan and snuck into the woods and got drunk. They were caught staggering down the road to the seminary and forced to confess.”

He added: ''The school wrote a letter to our parents saying they liked us both, but would prefer if we didn't return. So we weren't kicked out, just preferred not to go.''

Tom Cruise as a young star in 1983's Risky Business (WENN)

Dempler's claims haven't been corroborated by the actor, but his friend claimed even back then the 50 year-old's acting talent shone through.

''In sport and acting, he came out of his shell. They were competitions, you see, and if it were competitive, he'd be on it. Otherwise he'd just survey the scene,” he revealed.

''We had a great drama teacher in Father Aubert Grieser. He taught us how to speak in public. We used to get into trouble, as Aubert would tell us not to spit when we were speaking and we'd spit on purpose. It'd cost us 50 cents.''

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