Wild theory sparks after Julian McMahon’s death revealed in secret cancer battle

2024-10-06 13:34:12

• 
  Questions raised about the location of Aussie star’s death
  
• 
  Clearwater is almost completely owned by Church of Scientology
  
• 
  READ MORE: Julian McMahon looked frail four months before passing
  

When Julian McMahon’s heartbroken wife announced he had died in the United States after secretly suffering from an unnamed
cancer
, one seemingly minor detail raised immediate questions.

As part of her statement, shared on Saturday Australian time, Kelly McMahon revealed Julian had passed in the city of Clearwater,
Florida
– a seaside enclave on the Gulf of
Mexico
where the Charmed actor had no known connections.

Clearwater, which has a population of 116,000, is notorious for being overrun by the Church of
Scientology
.

The religion’s global headquarters, Flag, is in the heart of the town, and its followers own most of the commercial real estate.

Kelly’s statement prompted a flurry of speculation online that Julian – son of former
Australian Prime Minister
William McMahon – could be a follower of the controversial organisation.

‘I live in Clearwater… close to a house [Scientologist]
John Travolta
owns because we’re about a mile from the Scientology center in downtown Clearwater,’ one local wrote on
Instagram
.

‘I was wondering if Julian McMahon was a Scientologist since [Kelly’s statement] said he died in Clearwater, because why else would he live the last few months of his life there? The only celebrities that do are usually Scientologists. Surprised, that’s for certain!’

Another person posted on Twitter, ‘Why was Julian McMahon in Clearwater when he died? Like, that’s Scientology city.’

Julian’s place of death also sparked a thread on Reddit, where one person dismissed speculation by saying, ‘He was an Australian who loved the beach. I don’t see him being involved with Scientology’.

Indeed, there is no mention of Julian, former model Kelly, his daughter Madison or ex-wife Brooke Burns on any Scientology databases, nor is Daily Mail Australia suggesting he was a Scientologist.

Attempts to reach a representative for Julian have been made.

So notorious is the town’s connection to the religion that former celebrity follower Leah Remini dedicated an entire episode of her docuseries Scientology and the Aftermath to how the church took it over.

A Tampa Bay Times investigation revealed the church, its members and companies now own 185 properties in the city’s downtown enclave.

Church poster boy
Tom Cruise
lives in a penthouse apartment with his son Connor, and famous follower Kirstie Alley, who died in 2022 from colon cancer, owned a waterfront mansion there – which she bought from fellow late Scientologist Lisa Marie Presley in 2000.

Devotee John Travolta’s wife Kelly Preston died after a battle with breast cancer in Clearwater in 2020.

It’s not known if Julian lived in Clearwater.

His daughter Madison, 25, appears to reside in Miami, a four-hour drive away, where she is a yoga instructor.

Widow Kelly, a former model, now describes herself as a ‘spiritual concierge’, operating a business called Super Spiritual Girl.

According to her website, she is a shamanic healer, reiki master, certified meditation instructor and intuitive reader. She has hosted spiritual workshops in Miami.

After achieving acting success in Australia on Home and Away, Julian moved to Los Angeles, where he owned two houses.

He offloaded a Hollywood Hills home in 2014, and sold his Malibu mansion in 2017.

In announcing his shock passing, Kelly said on Saturday in a statement to Deadline: ‘With an open heart, I wish to share with the world that my beloved husband, Julian McMahon, died peacefully this week after a valiant effort to overcome cancer.

‘Julian loved life. He loved his family. He loved his friends. He loved his work, and he loved his fans. His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible.’

The talented actor was best known for his role as Dr. Christian Troy on the FX series Nip/Tuck.

He then won the hearts of many as he portrayed Cole Turner in Charmed seasons 3 through 5 from 2000 to 2003 before returning as a guest for season 7 in 2005.

Julian later starred as Jess LaCroix on the CBS series FBI: Most Wanted beginning 2020 but made a surprise exit in March 2022 after three seasons.

On the big screen, he starred as iconic supervillain Dr. Doom in two Marvel movies Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer (2007).

He also appeared alongside Sandra Bullock in 2007 supernatural psychological thriller Premonition.

Most recently, he teamed up with Nicolas Cage for the Australian-made film The Surfer.

In a statement to Deadline, Nicolas said, ‘I spent six weeks working with Julian, and he was the most talented of actors.’

He added: ‘Our scenes together on The Surfer were amongst my favorites I have ever participated in, and Julian is one of my favorite people. He was a kind and intelligent man. My love to his family.’

Julian and Kelly had been together for 11 years before marrying in a romantic ceremony in Lake Tahoe, a lakeside area on the edge of California and Nevada, in 2014. It was his third marriage.

He was previously married to model and Baywatch actress Brooke Burns – mum to Madison – from 1999 to 2001.

Brooke shared a touching old image of Julian and Madison to Instagram, accompanied with the words, ‘Rest in peace’ and a heart emoji.

Julian’s first marriage was to Australian actress and pop star Dannii Minogue, after meeting on the Home and Away set in 1991.

Their union was doomed, seemingly in part due to Julian’s mother – the late Lady Sonia McMahon, a Sydney socialite – not approving of Dannii.

‘His family did not like me,’ Dannii said. ‘There’s a certain social pecking order and I was definitely not in that scene. She [Sonia] only spoke to me a couple of times.’

Dannii alleged her former mother-in-law ’caused issues’ at the couple’s 1994 wedding.

‘On the actual day of the wedding there was drama,’ she said. ‘She said she wasn’t going to show up, so that’s quite stressful. Julian and I were going ahead with the marriage regardless.

‘So she did end up coming and was causing a scene. It wasn’t the greatest… it was hard. I tried to stay away from it. I just wanted to enjoy the day.’

The marriage ended 18 months later.

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