It may not be the latest religious fad in L.A., but Buddhism has certainly continued to attract celebrity practitioners unsatisfied with their own religions. From Richard Gere to Orlando Bloom, Beastie Boy Adam Yauch to Kate Bosworth, the adoption of Buddhism into celebrity culture has helped bring the Eastern religion into the Western conscience....Celebrities like Gere, Yauch, Steven Seagal and Keanu Reeves have made their religious beliefs public, but it is no longer just the stars who are interested in Buddhism; it is the Hollywood machine itself.
Steven Seagal is one of 14 celebrity Buddhists assessed in Armstrong's article "Celebrities who are Buddhists... with an assessment of the degree Buddhism is a part of each of their careers." Steven Seagal was ranked third highest on the list in terms of the proportion of web hits (google.com: 2.1%) and current news article hits (news.google.com: 2.8%) mentioning him which also contain either the word "Buddhism" or "Buddhist." From: Tom Armstrong, "Celebrities who are Buddhists... with an assessment of the degree Buddhism is a part of each of their careers", 8 March 2005 in Zen Unbound Emagazine (http://www.zenunbound.com/celebbuds.html; viewed 18 August 2005):
Gere, Seagal, Anderson, and Cohen each allow Buddhism to be a big part of their persona.