Celebs Who Believed in Reincarnation
Belief in past lives has surfaced again and again in pop culture, often through the personal stories of famous people. Some were drawn to Eastern philosophies and spiritual teachers. Others arrived at the idea through private experiences that they later described in books, interviews, songs, and art.
This list brings together well known names who connected themselves with the concept of the soul living more than once. You will see actors, musicians, artists, business leaders, and even a celebrated general. Each entry sums up what they did, said, or practiced that ties them to reincarnation, along with a bit of context about how that belief showed up in their public work or personal life.
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine made reincarnation a mainstream conversation in Hollywood through bestselling memoirs in the 1980s. She wrote about past life regressions and spiritual travel in books that reached a wide audience and stayed on charts for months. Her accounts included detailed sessions, teachers she sought out, and the practices she tried while working around a busy film schedule.
Her story reached television when the miniseries ‘Out on a Limb’ aired in 1987 with her own experiences as the plot. She continued to tour, lecture, and publish follow ups that expanded on karma and the continuity of the soul, helping to shape how many Americans first heard about these ideas.
Richard Gere
Richard Gere has followed Tibetan Buddhist teachings since the 1970s. He studied with well known lamas, supported cultural institutions devoted to Tibetan studies, and publicly discussed rebirth and compassion as core parts of his practice.
He connected his advocacy for Tibet to these beliefs and often framed service work as part of a longer spiritual path. His appearances at events with Tibetan teachers, along with essays and interviews, consistently pointed to rebirth as a living doctrine rather than a symbolic idea.
Uma Thurman
Uma Thurman grew up in a household immersed in Buddhist scholarship. Her father is a prominent scholar of Tibetan Buddhism and her upbringing included exposure to teachings that present rebirth as a basic part of the path.
She has spoken over the years about being comfortable with the idea of reincarnation and has participated in projects and events that introduce Buddhist concepts to wider audiences. Her involvement with cultural organizations linked to Tibetan studies helped keep those ideas in the public eye.
George Harrison
George Harrison embraced Krishna devotion in the late 1960s and supported projects that shared Vedic teachings. He helped release recordings of mantra chanting, wrote liner notes about the soul’s journey, and funded printing of texts that explain cycles of birth and death.
The theme of returning lives appears around his music and personal choices. After his passing, his family observed rituals consistent with beliefs in the continuity of consciousness, echoing ideas he had discussed throughout his career.
Madonna
Madonna began studying Kabbalah in the late 1990s and highlighted teachings that include the concept of the soul returning. She adopted related practices, learned Hebrew phrases associated with spiritual correction, and spoke about personal growth across lifetimes.
Her public art often touched on transformation and renewal. She also produced children’s stories that draw on Kabbalistic ethics, and she referenced spiritual laws of cause and effect that align with traditions where reincarnation is part of the framework.
Ashton Kutcher
Ashton Kutcher participated in Kabbalah study circles and wore symbolic items tied to that practice. He discussed karma and personal responsibility in ways that reflect teachings about a soul learning over multiple lives.
His appearances at study events and fundraisers linked to that community reinforced the connection. He has used social platforms to share short reflections about spiritual growth that match beliefs in lessons carried across lifetimes.
Demi Moore
Demi Moore spent years studying Kabbalah and incorporated its rituals into major life moments. In interviews she described belief in the soul’s journey, spoke about lessons that repeat until learned, and connected those ideas to daily practice.
Her involvement included classes, charity work, and public readings that present reincarnation as one path the soul may take. She often framed challenges as opportunities for spiritual correction, which fits long standing Kabbalistic teaching.
Russell Brand
Russell Brand studied Vedanta and meditation and has spoken often about samsara and the end of the cycle of birth and death. He reads and cites classical texts and brings teachers onto his programs to discuss how rebirth and karma operate in practice.
He links recovery work to spiritual transformation and uses terms that come directly from traditions where reincarnation is a given. His talks and books explain these ideas in plain language while keeping their original intent intact.
Orlando Bloom
Orlando Bloom has practiced with Soka Gakkai since his teens and credits chanting with major changes in his life. While the movement emphasizes transforming this life, it also teaches the continuity of life through past and future existences, which Bloom has acknowledged in public conversations about practice.
He has appeared at international gatherings and filmed messages about perseverance and human revolution. Those messages are rooted in a view of life that does not end at death, which aligns with broader Buddhist ideas about rebirth.
Henry Ford
Henry Ford described belief in reincarnation in interviews during the 1920s. He said the idea answered questions he had about talent, temperament, and unfinished work and that it removed a fear of death by presenting life as an ongoing process.
He connected the belief to his work ethic, saying that tasks could be resumed in a later life. These statements were unusual for a business leader of his era and helped put the concept into newspapers and magazines read by millions.
George S. Patton
General George S. Patton wrote poems and diaries that described vivid impressions of earlier lives as a soldier in ancient and medieval wars. He visited historic battlefields in Europe and North Africa and wrote that the terrain felt familiar to him.
He used the language of destiny and return when addressing troops and recorded dreams that matched battles from different centuries. His private writings present reincarnation as a personal certainty rather than a literary device.
Salvador DalÃ
Salvador Dalà believed he was the reincarnation of his older brother who died before he was born. That belief came from family conversations and shaped his self image from an early age, appearing in paintings and essays throughout his career.
He explored the theme directly in works such as Portrait of My Dead Brother from the early 1960s. The idea of a returning soul influenced how he portrayed identity, memory, and doubling in both paintings and prose.
Steven Seagal
Steven Seagal was recognized by a senior Tibetan teacher in 1997 as a tulku, a person believed to be the rebirth of a lineage holder. He publicly accepted that recognition and spoke about the responsibilities it carries within Tibetan Buddhism.
He has supported Buddhist monasteries and appeared at religious ceremonies tied to that lineage. In interviews he described practices intended to benefit beings across lifetimes, which reflects the theology behind his recognition.
Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Carlisle adopted Buddhist practice in the 1990s and has said she believes in reincarnation and karma. She explained that chanting and study helped her recover from addiction and reset the direction of her life.
Her memoir detailed the shift from fame to a routine built around practice and service. She has performed at benefit concerts for Buddhist inspired charities and often mentions the long view of the soul when discussing personal change.
Glenn Hoddle
Glenn Hoddle spoke about reincarnation during his time as England manager in 1999 and linked present circumstances to actions in previous lives. The comments sparked a national debate and led to his departure from the role, which made his belief widely known beyond sports.
He later wrote about his faith journey and continued to describe a spiritual view that includes returning lives and karmic consequences. His long association with a well known faith healer and his own words kept his position clear in the public record.
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