Tom Cruise has one biological daughter with his ex-wife, Katie Holmes. The 58-year-old and his daughter, Suri Cruise once shared a close-knit relationship, which seems to have dwindled with age.
Hollywood legend, Tom Cruise has many sides to him. And being a remarkable father is one of them. Married thrice in his lifetime, the actor and producer has three children from his last two marriages to Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes, both actresses.
Of his three children, only one, Suri Cruise is his biological daughter, while the other two, were adopted during his marriage to Kidman.
Notwithstanding, Tom strived for years to maintain a close relationship with all three children while fostering a familial bond between them. His relationship with his daughter, Suri, was particularly enviable, with the duo seeming inseparable.
However, those close-knit ties with which the father-daughter pair captured hearts years ago seemed to fizzle out over time. The duo has rarely appeared in public together since Tom’s split from Holmes in 2012. This has led to speculations that Tom and his daughter have become estranged.
To understand Tom Cruise’s current relationship with his daughter, Suri Cruise, it is important to learn more about the actor’s journey through fatherhood.
TOM CRUISE AS A FATHER
The 58-year-old actor first became a father after he and his then-wife, Nicole Kidman adopted a daughter, Isabella Cruise, born December 1992. The former couple later adopted a son, Conor Cruise, born January 1995, before their eventual split in 2001.
In 2005, Tom kicked off his romance with Holmes. The couple welcomed their daughter, Suri exactly one year later, in April 2006. By November that same year, the duo legalized their union in a star-studded ceremony in Bracciano.
While the Hollywood A-lister was excited to tie the knot with the love of his wife, his greater happiness came from the birth of Suri. The twosome withheld their child’s photos from the public for months, eventually releasing her first glimpses on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine.
In a follow-up interview, Tom gushed about his excitement, referring to his newborn as his joy. He also noted Suri was a dream come true as he always wanted to be a father his whole life. And Tom unapologetically enjoyed his fatherhood to the fullest in the years following the child’s arrival.
TOM STRIVED TO BUILD A LOVING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HIS THREE CHILDREN
During his marriage with Holmes, Tom Cruise did his best to keep all three of his kids united in love. Following Suri’s birth, Isabella and Connor became part of her life, building up their relationship from the cradle.
Even as a baby, Suri Cruise’s older siblings were excited to spend time with her, discussing everything they planned to do together when she finally grew up. Both Holmes and Tom were glad to see the kids bonding. The “Mission Impossible” star even had plans to take the kids on several adventurous trips to foster their bond, including a stop at the Kilimanjaro Mountain.
It appears his split from Holmes cut short those expectations. Sources confirmed that the “Dawson’s Creek” actress refrained from making contact with her stepchildren following the controversial divorce.
TOM CRUISE’S RELATIONSHIP WITH SURI
These days, Tom Cruise and Suri Cruise’s relationship appear to have gone downhill. The teenager, who marked her fifteenth birthday in April 2021 had barely made public appearances in her dad’s company in almost a decade.
Sources confirmed in 2019 that things were challenging between the producer and his daughter. The source further explained how Tom still loved the teenager notwithstanding and looked forward to rekindling their bond.
THEY WERE ONCE INSEPARABLE
Although parental feuds, busy schedules, and legal arrangements have slowly crept into the relationship between Tom Cruise and Suri Cruise over the years, things were not always so.
Looking back at their relationship before the highly-publicized divorce, the icon and his daughter easily passed for BFFs. The twosome traveled the world together, in the company of the rest of the Cruise-Holmes party. While some of these trips were strictly fun, others were filming-related, thanks to Suri’s parent’s Hollywood careers.
No matter the reason behind their vacations or outings, the little girl always remained by her dad’s side. They walked the streets together, attended shows, and ran errands as a pair. In most of their public sightings, Suri was either holding her dad’s hands affectionately or riding on his arms as he carried her through the city. No one could deny the love and affection between the father-daughter pair.
WHAT TOM HAS TO SAY ABOUT SURI
Despite not being able to partake actively in his daughter’s life due to custody agreements, the legend has had some nice things to say about the youngster through the years. Who wouldn’t?
Forbes named Suri Cruise the World’s most influential tot in 2008. She was only 2 at the time, yet, garnered widespread media attention. Tom did not seem to have a problem with the resulting paparazzi. During an interview at the time, Tom admitted the photos of his daughter published by the press were incredible.
Going further, he noted that as much as his responsibility as a parent entailed protecting his daughter from the publicity, he trusted Suri to cope well. He went on to refer to the tot as an open and warm child who waved to people on the streets, was always happy, and fun.
THE TRUTH ABOUT TOM CRUISE AND KATIE HOLMES’ DIVORCE
Katie Holmes famously filed for divorce from Tom Cruise in June 2012, breaking the news via a phone call. The actor, who was on set of “Oblivion” when the call came in, felt his world shatter around him at that moment.
Eleven days after the filing, the duo reached a close-door settlement, giving Holmes custody of the then six-year-old Suri. The agreement also granted Tom generous visitation rights. However, those rights barely mattered when the actress changed apartments, switched phone numbers, and hired a strict security detail right after their split.
A source disclosed months later that Cruise had only spoken to his daughter via telephone since the split. Those extreme measures left many wondering if the couple’s separation entailed more than they were letting out.
Several reports at the time attributed the split to Tom’s practice of Scientology, which Holmes could no longer withstand. Others speculated that Holmes left the marriage for fear of her safety, and that of her daughter.
A source refuted those claims at the time, affirming that the entertainment icons went their separate ways because Holmes became increasingly unhappy in the marriage. Since she no longer had the life she wanted, she deemed walking away as the only way out.
SURI’S RELATIONSHIP WITH HER MOM
Through the years, the fifteen-year-old’s relationship with her mom has only deepened. Suri Cruise and her mom now have the close-knit ties she once shared with Tom.
Although Holmes strives to keep her daughter relatively out of the spotlight, they have been captured in public running errands together, hanging out, grabbing a meal, or just taking a stroll. In December 2017, the duo attended an event at Jingle Bell in New York City together.
During the event, Suri snagged her moment of fame when she got the privilege of introducing Taylor Swift on stage. A video excerpt from the mind-blowing moment made the rounds on social media for months.
The romance between Holmes and Tom may be long over, but their daughter certainly remains a lasting connection between them. Here’s to hoping the father-daughter pair find their way back to each other once again.
