Following her explosive interview last week about the Church of Scientology, Leah Remini has revealed that Katie Holmes’ apology for causing her any distress in the past “almost makes me want to cry” in a new TV appearance.

Remini’s sensational appearance on ‘20/20’ on Friday was one of the biggest news items of the week, and it prompted an on-air statement of regret from Holmes – which came via a written note and not from a face-to-face interview with Holmes herself – that read: “I regret having upset Leah in the past, and wish her only the best in the future.”

Leah ReminiLeah Remini gave another interview about Scientology on Monday

On ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’, Remini said: “I know now [Holmes] did what she did, leaving [Scientology] the way that she did, because she had to protect her daughter, which, in a way, connects us now.”

Remini revealed in 2014 how she left the religion for the sake of her own daughter, because she didn’t want her to “choose the Church… …which so many families do in these kind of extremist religions.” The former ‘King of Queens’ actress, 45, now says that leaving the Church has opened her eyes to the challenges faced by other former members.

More: Leah Remini gives sensational interview about Scientology

“Now I know really what she was going through,” the actress said, whose new memoir is released on November 3rd. “At the time I was thinking of myself and my family and what we were going through and, although painful, I had no idea she was going through probably a lot more.”

Katie HolmesKatie Holmes, who apologised to Remini via a statement, pictured with her daughter Suri

Holmes divorced Tom Cruise, arguably the most high-profile believer in Scientology, in 2012 after six years of marriage. It was during the run-up to their marriage in 2006 that Remini felt she was being exploited by the Church, saying last week that she was pressured into inviting her friend Jennifer Lopez and her then-husband Marc Anthony, in what she claims was an attempt to convert the singer.

In a previous statement, Church International Spokesperson Karin Pouw attacked the validity of Remini’s interview, claiming that it's nothing more than an attempt at remaining in the spotlight. “It comes as no surprise that someone as self-absorbed as Leah Remini with an insatiable craving for attention would exploit her former faith as a publicity stunt by rewriting her history with it.”

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