tom cruise girlfriend 80s

Tom Cruise’s Girlfriend History: From Nicole Kidman to Katie Holmes to Today

Tom Cruise has had a high-profile love life ever since launching his acting career in the '80s. Here's a complete breakdown of the 'Mission: Impossible' star's romantic history.

• Tom Cruise is an actor, famous for films like Top Gun , Jerry Maguire , and Mission: Impossible .
• He’s been married to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes.

Tom Cruise ‘s love life has been closely followed for decades, ever since making his breakthrough in the 1983 classic  Risky Business . His romantic history consists of three famous marriages (all of which ended, coincidentally, when his wives were 33 years old) and a string of other high-profile romances. But between 2012-2020, Tom seemingly pumped the brakes on public romances.

However, there was renewed interest in the love life of one of Hollywood’s most famous bachelors after a new report surfaced in December 2020. It claimed that Tom was dating his co-star   Hayley Atwell  from Mission: Impossible 7 . In June 2022, another report came out that the pair broke up . In 2023, Tom reportedly moved on with model Elsina Khayrova . We have more information on that below — including Tom’s many other romances since the ’80s.

Melissa Gilbert

Melissa Gilbert , 59, who played Laura Ingalls on the NBC series Little House on the Prairie , claimed that she dated Tom in the early 1980’s. This was at the very beginning of his career! “Actually, when I dated him he was Tom Mapother still. It was when he first moved to Los Angeles and I think I was 16, maybe, or 17?,” Melissa said on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen   in 2017.

“I did not have sex with him,” Laura added. “We made out, but, honestly, there was no sex. He was a good kisser. But, you know, he was, like, a struggling, starving actor. I actually bought him his first set of dishes.” Melissa even reminisced on her friendship/past relationship with her fellow “Brat Pack” pal, Tom, in a throwback Instagram post shared in Oct. 2019.

Heather Locklear

Heather Locklear , 61, was never Tom’s girlfriend, but she did go on one (sort of) date with him. It didn’t go well, according to her recollection. The Melrose Place  star explained in a 2013 interview on Chelsea Lately  that they had both “auditioned for something” together, back when Tom “didn’t have friends” in Hollywood in the early ’80s. So, they went dancing.

“You know in ‘Risky Business’ where he does that dance in his underwear and does the splits? We were dancing at a club and he went into that. He starting doing the splits,” Heather said. “You just kind of stand there and don’t know what to do. Do you dance around him? So, I was like, ‘I’ll just sit down and you can.'”

“And that was the only date you had?,” Chelsea Handler then asked Heather, to which the actress said, “I think so.” Tom and Heather are pictured above together in 1981.

Rebecca De Mornay

Rebecca de Mornay and Tom played lovers in Tom’s breakthrough film, Risky Business , which came out in 1983. Their on-screen chemistry turned out to be real! Although Rebecca joked that Tom was “extremely annoying” at first, she admitted, “He came to grow on me because we wound up together for two and a half years after that film” in a 2018 interview with Celebrity Page .

Tom Cruise famously made Cher ‘s “Top 5” lovers list, which she revealed on  Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen  in 2013. “I had just the greatest lovers ever. Not a long list. It’s just a good list,” the 77-year-old singer had said.

Cher explained how she and Tom connected in a separate interview. “A bunch of people who were dyslexic were invited to the White House, and Tom and I are both dyslexic. We didn’t go out till way later, but there definitely was a connection there,” Cher told the  Mail on Sunday   in 2018. She added, “Though I don’t get what he does, that whole Scientology thing. I can’t understand it so I just… don’t.”

Mimi Rogers

It was during this relationship that Tom infamously joined the Church of Scientology, which he is a prominent figure in to this day. When Tom met actress Mimi Rogers , 67, she had been a few years divorced from Scientologist Jim Rogers . “I met her at a dinner party about a year ago, when I was developing Top Gun. She was dating a friend, and, uh, I thought she was extremely bright,” Tom recalled in a 1986 interview with Rolling Stone .

However, Mimi had a conflicting story. “I wasn’t seeing anybody, he wasn’t seeing anybody, and they thought, ‘These people should be going out with somebody — let’s see if they want to go out with each other.’ And we said, ‘Aw, what the heck. OK’,” Mimi told the Sun Sentinel  in 1987.

Tom sounded smitten in another Rolling Stone interview, which was published mere days before his split from Mimi was announced in 1990. “I’d never been in love before. Since I’ve been with her, it’s opened me up a lot. I think it’s helped me be a better actor. We live a lot of life together. We share everything,” he gushed, later adding, “I care about my wife more than anything in the world. She’s my best friend. I just really like being with her, you know? I love her.” The divorce was finalized in February 1990, three years after they got married.

Nicole Kidman

Tom Cruise moved on to his next marriage, which was with Moulin Rouge!  star Nicole Kidman , 55. They met on the set of their movie Days of Thunder , in which they played lovers, in 1990. By the end of the year, they were husband and wife. Tom and Nicole adopted two children amid their 11-year marriage : Isabella in 1992, and Connor in 1994.

During the marriage, Tom and Nicole also filmed another movie together, Eyes Wide Shut , in 1999. Nicole even looked back at their time filming together in a rare interview in Oct. 2020, telling the  New York Times , “We were happily married through that. We would go go-kart racing after those scenes. We’d rent out a place and go racing at three in the morning. I don’t know what else to say. Maybe I don’t have the ability to look back and dissect it. Or I’m not willing to.”

Nicole famously never joined Tom’s Church of Scientology, which even their children went on to be active members in. Tom and Nicole’s split was announced in Feb. 2001, and Tom filed for divorce two days later. To this day, the exes have minimal interactions with one another. “Tom has had little to no contact with Nicole in the 18 years since being married and that is fine by him,” a source close to Tom EXCLUSIVELY told HollywoodLife . “He really does not miss her much at all.”

Penélope Cruz

Tom took a break from the married life and started dating Penélope Cruz , 49, whom he met on the set of the movie Vanilla Sky  in 2000. They enjoyed a three-year relationship, which the former couple’s reps confirmed ended in 2004. “They remain good friends and still talk often. There is no other person involved,” Penelope’s spokesperson told PEOPLE at the time.

Katie Holmes

Enter Katie Holmes , who to date remains one of Tom’s most famous exes. Ironically, Katie , 44, she once told Seventeen Magazine   in 2004 that she “used to think that [she] was going to marry Tom Cruise,” which didn’t turn out to just be wishful thinking. The two came together the very next year.

Katie and Tom’s first public appearance as lovers happened in April of 2005. Tom was with the Dawson’s Creek star in Rome, where he was visiting to collect his David di Donatello Award for lifetime achievement. The very next month, Tom was jumping on Oprah Winfrey ‘s couch and proclaiming that he’s “in love” (to which Oprah said, “The boy is gone”).

The relationship quickly advanced. When Katie stepped onto the  Batman Begins  premiere in June of 2005, the actress revealed that she’s converting to Scientology (Tom’s religion) and her engagement to Tom was announced that very same month. By October, the couple was expecting, and in April of 2006 they welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Suri .

Katie and Tom tied the knot in Italy in Nov. 2006, and all seemed happy until June of 2012, when Katie filed for divorce. A settlement for custody of Suri was decided on a month later. A year afterwards, Tom admitted that he “didn’t expect” that divorce in an interview with German television network ProSieben.

Katie reflected on the time after the divorce in an April 2020 interview with   InStyle . “That time was intense. It was a lot of attention, and I had a little child on top of it. We had some funny moments out and about in public. So many people I didn’t know became my friends and helped us out, and that’s what I love about the city,” she said.

Hayley Atwell

Tom reportedly started dating Hayley Atwell  — whom you may have seen playing Peggy Carter in the Captain America  movies — in 2020, according to a report from The Sun that surfaced in Dec. of that year. Hayley and Tom filmed Mission 7: Impossible  together amid the pandemic.

“Tom and Hayley hit it off from day one,” a source told The Sun , who added, “Lockdown, and all the difficulties that came with it, brought them even closer and they’ve become fairly inseparable.” Tom and Hayley did not confirm this report, but he hasn’t confirmed any romances since his marriage to Katie, and on June 12, 2022, it was reported he and Hayley had split . It was the second reported split since back in Sept. 2021, they reportedly also called it quits but reconciled a short time later.

“Tom and Hayley’s relationship was genuine,” a source told The Sun . “In spite of some rumours to the contrary, it was never just for the cameras. Unfortunately it hasn’t worked out for them. They get on really well, and have fantastic chemistry, which is why they decided to quietly give the relationship another try earlier this year.”

Elsina Khayrova

In mid-2023, multiple outlets reported that Tom had quietly started dating the model and socialite.

“They’re very happy,” a source told Us Weekly in December 2023. “And Tom’s extremely confident about it working out for the long term. Tom is going into 2024 totally energized, excited and feeling healthier and happier than he has in years. This is a very special time for him, and having a serious relationship in his life that he can build on is the icing on the cake.”

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All of Tom Cruise’s wives and girlfriends in order, chronologically

There’s nobody like Tom Cruise . He’s charismatic, he’s eccentric, he’s controversial, and he’s everybody’s beloved. He has made some of the most quotable films of all time yet has dedicated the last decade of his career to performing some of the most dangerous stunts ever. His unpredictability is arguably his greatest weapon, and we struggle to find a more perfect word to describe his love life.

Cruise has been world-famous since the 1980s, and in that time, he’s been linked to several different women. The interesting thing to note here, especially given Cruise’s desire for privacy, is that nearly all the women he’s dated are celebrities. Apparently, the Mission: Impossible actor likes to fraternize with other actors. Cruise’s latest girlfriend is literally his Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One co-star! However, before we jump ahead too quickly, let’s step back and begin at the very start.

Melissa Gilbert

Cruise’s relationship with Melissa Gilbert predates the name Cruise! Gilbert appeared on an episode of Watch What Happens Live in 2014, and she revealed that the actor was still going by his birth name when they first met. “I was maybe 16 or 17,” she recalled. “Actually, when I dated him, he was still Tom Mapother.”

Both Cruise and Gilbert were actors in 1981, but their situations could not have been more different. The former had just made his film debut in Endless Love (1981), and the latter was one of the cast members on the hit show Little House on the Prairie (1974-83). “He was like a struggling, starving actor, and I was working,” Gilbert added. “I actually bought him his first set of dishes.” They broke up within a few months.

Patti Scialfa

There are claims that Cruise romanced Heather Locklear and Rebecca de Mornay during the early 80s, but neither relationship has been confirmed by the people involved, so we felt like they shouldn’t warrant their own entry. However, what has been confirmed is the brief romance between Cruise and Patti Scialfa in 1985.

In a 1988 profile on Scialfa, People Magazine revealed that she dated Cruise before moving on to her future husband (and fellow E Street Band member) Bruce Springsteen. “Patti was hardly a nun before she met Bruce,” a source told People. “She doesn’t go out with accountants.” Scialfa and Springsteen have been married since 1991.

Tom Cruise and Cher dating already seems like the epitome of 80s pop culture, but it gets even better when you consider where they met: the 1985 wedding of Sean Penn and Madonna. These circumstances are so bizarre and hilarious that they sound made up. We digress. Cruise and Cher dated for a year, and while things didn’t last between them, there didn’t appear to be any hard feelings. Cher even listed Cruise as one of her top five lovers on a 2013 Watch What Happens Live episode.

Cher also marked the last time Cruise dated someone more famous than he was. Cher was one of the biggest pop stars on the planet and had just earned a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in Mask (1985). Cruise released Top Gun the following year, and things were never the same.

Mimi Rogers

Cruise married actress Mimi Rogers in 1987. They were together for three years, and BBC News theorized that Rogers was actually the person who introduced Cruise to the Church of Scientology. Either way, their romance was not built to last. Rogers cited intimacy issues, and then there were discrepancies in their respective careers.

Rogers’ career ran parallel with Cruise’s. She also made her film debut in 1981 and earned critical praise for her performances in Gung Ho (1986), Someone to Watch Over Me , and Street Smart (both 1987), but Cruise’s megastardom led to her being overlooked in the media. “No matter what the article is, it’s ‘Tom Cruise‘s wife’,” Rogers told People . She received a $4 million settlement from the divorce.

Nicole Kidman

Cruise quickly rebounded from the Rogers marriage and started dating Nicole Kidman. The two had met during the making of Days of Thunder (1990) and were already two years into their marriage by the time they made Far and Away (1992). Cruise and Kidman were one of the premiere celebrity couples of the decade, and their third collaboration, Eyes Wide Shut (1999), drew attention for its scandalous depiction of a marriage on the rocks.

Eventually, the issues bled into real life. Cruise and Kidman divorced in 2001 and released a joint statement citing “difficulties inherent in divergent careers.” They remain co-parents to their adopted children, Isabella Jane and Connor Antony.

Penelope Cruz

Cruise likes to rebound quickly, and he did it again while making Vanilla Sky (2001). He started dating co-star Penelope Cruz, who played his love interest in the film, and despite their shared fame, they maintained a relatively low profile. They dated until 2004 when their amicable split was chalked up to scheduling conflicts and a general acceptance that things had run their course.

At the time, Lee Anne DeVette, Cruise’s sister and publicist, told People : “They broke up at the end of January, and it’s amicable.” Cruz’s publicist, Robert Garlock, went as far as to state that the actors stayed in touch after splitting. “They remain good friends and still talk often,” he assured fans. “There is no other person involved.”

Katie Holmes

We wonder if you need a refresher on this one. Cruise went on The Oprah Winfrey Show to jump on the host’s couch and declare his love for Katie Holmes in one of the most cringe-inducing interviews ever. That being said, the couch jumping worked, and Cruise and Holmes were wed in 2005. They had a daughter named Suri the following year and remained steady tabloid fodder until their divorce in 2012.

Holmes told In Style that the attention of being married to Cruise was often overwhelming. “That time was intense,” she admitted. “It was a lot of attention, and I had a little child on top of it. We had some funny moments out and about in public.”

Hayley Atwell

Cruise’s love life has slowed down, but things picked up with Hayley Atwell during the making of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One . The Sun reports that Cruise and Atwell started dating in 2020, when Dead Reckoning Part One was going into production, and remained a couple until their split in May 2022.

While a reason for their official split was not given, Cruise and Atwell appear to be friendly with one another during the press junkets. Atwell even attended the premiere of Cruise’s film Top Gun: Maverick (2022) to show her support. Both are currently single.

Wonderwall.com

All the women Tom Cruise has loved and lost over the years

In the years since he split from third wife Katie Holmes , Tom Cruise has done his best to keep his love life out of the spotlight. But sometimes, he can't avoid headlines. Wonderwall.com is taking a look back at all the women the iconic action star — whose newest movie, "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One," opens in theaters on July 12, 2023 — has loved and lost over the years… 

In 2016, Tom's first girlfriend, a woman named Diane Cox, opened up to DailyMail.com about her two-year romance with the A-list actor. The duo met at their high school prom in 1979 when he was 18 and she was 17 — and a grade below him. They ended up ditching their dates for each other and dating for more than two years. The high school sweethearts ultimately split when Diane cheated while they were struggling to make a long-distance relationship work after Tom left his native New Jersey for Hollywood. "We didn't talk about marriage but he told me I was the love of his life, the only person he wanted," Diane said years later.

Keep reading for Tom's romance retrospective…

MORE:  Follow Wonderwall on MSN for more fun celebrity & entertainment photo galleries and content

Tom Cruise 's first famous girlfriend? That would be "Little House on the Prairie" star Melissa Gilbert! They briefly dated in the early '80s. "It was when he first moved to Los Angeles and I think I was 16, maybe, or 17. … He was a struggling starving actor and I was working. I actually bought him his first set of dishes," she said during a 2014 appearance on "Watch What Happens Live," adding that Tom was a good kisser but that things between them never went much further than that.

MORE: "Top Gun: Maverick" and more of the best movies about pilots

Actor Curtis Armstrong — who had a small role in "Risky Business" — claimed in his 2017 memoir that Tom Cruise had an "intense affair" with the film's leading lady, Rebecca De Mornay, when they shot the 1983 comedy. At the time, she was involved with a different actor: the late Harry Dean Stanton, who was 36 years Tom's senior. Tom and Rebecca were seen together several times in 1985, though it's unclear how long their "intense affair" actually lasted.

MORE: Handsome leading men when they were young

One and done! During a 2013 appearance on Chelsea Handler's " Chelsea Lately " show, Heather Locklear said she only went out with Tom Cruise once — even though they were photographed together multiple times in the early '80s. They went to a nightclub together after meeting at an audition, she said, but her interest in him cooled when he started dancing: "You know in 'Risky Business' where he does that dance in his underwear and does the split? We were dancing in a club and he went into that," she recalled. "You just kind of stand there and don't know what to do. Do you dance around him? It was weird. So I just sat down." And that was that.

Tom Cruise and Cher first met at Madonna and Sean Penn's 1985 nuptials. They reconnected at the White House a few months later during an event focused on people with dyslexia. "We didn't go out till way later, but there definitely was a connection there," the singer recalled in 2018. Five years earlier, she gushed that Tom, who's 16 years her junior, was "in the top five" of her all-time greatest lovers. "It was pretty hot and heavy for a little minute," she said. During a 2011 interview with "Entertainment Tonight," the superstar singer said that she loved Tom but that their careers ultimately pulled them apart: "[We broke up] after 'Risky Business' and right before 'The Color of Money.' I couldn't go to Chicago [where he was working] and that was kind of the straw that broke the camel's back," she revealed.

Tom Cruise briefly romanced musician Patti Scialfa in 1985 — a few years before her relationship with Bruce Springsteen turned romantic following his divorce from his first wife, Julianne Phillips. (Patti and Bruce tied the knot in 1991.)

In the mid-'80s, Tom Cruise met actress Mimi Rogers, who's seven years his senior, through mutual friends at a dinner party. They tied the knot in 1987 when she was 31 and he was just 24. (Emilio Estevez served as Tom's best man during the super-secret nuptials.) The actor once told Rolling Stone of his first missus, "I care about my wife more than anything in the world. She's my best friend. I just really like being with her, you know? I love her." But it wasn't meant to be: Tom reportedly filed to divorce Mimi in late 1989. "While there have been positive aspects to our marriage, there were some issues which could not be resolved even after working on them for a period of time," they said in a joint statement in early 1990. (It's widely believed, by the way, that Mimi introduced Tom to Scientology.)

In the wake of his split from Mimi Rogers, Tom Cruise fell hard for Nicole Kidman . They first connected on the 1989 set of the racing drama "Days of Thunder" and tied the knot on Christmas Eve in 1990 following a whirlwind courtship of about a year. A few years later, Tom told Vanity Fair that he felt "instant lust" for the Australian actress. "I thought she was amazingly sexy and stunning. It grew into love and respect," he said.

Newlyweds Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman shared the screen for the second time in Ron Howard's 1992 Western drama "Far and Away," which performed well at the box office in spite of poor reviews from critics.

In 1993, Tom Cruise and second wife Nicole Kidman adopted daughter Isabella Jane, who was 2 months old at the time. Two years later, they became a family of four when the "Days of Thunder" co-stars adopted a 2-week-old baby boy: their son Connor.

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman shared the screen for the third and final time in 1999's "Eyes Wide Shut." More than two decades later, the Australian actress would tell The New York Times that she and Tom were still "happily married" while shooting the Stanley Kubrick-directed erotic thriller. Still, less than two years later, their marriage of a decade came to an end: Tom filed for divorce in February 2001. "Maybe I don't have the ability to look back and dissect it. Or I'm not willing to," Nicole told the Times in late 2020 of what went wrong.

Tom Cruise and Penelope Cruise grew close while shooting the 2001 psychological thriller "Vanilla Sky." Their relationship of about three years came to an end in early 2004. Nearly a decade later, Vanity Fair reported that the couple parted ways when the Spanish actress refused to convert to Scientology.

In 2004 and 2005, Tom Cruise briefly dated Nazanin Boniadi, who later had stints on "General Hospital," "How I Met Your Mother," "Scandal" and "Homeland." According to persistent rumors, the Church of Scientology set up Tom and the Iranian British actress after "auditioning" several young beauties for the part of his real-life love interest. Former Scientologist Leah Remini, who's been extremely critical of the church over the years, claimed in her 2015 memoir that Nazanin "underwent a confidential mission for the church where she thought she was being prepared for a special humanitarian project but ended up with the role of Tom's girlfriend." The "King of Queens" alum also alleged that the church pushed Nazanin to break up with her then-boyfriend for Tom and gave her an expensive makeover to prepare her for her romance with the A-lister. Ultimately, the relationship lasted just three months. (But Tom and the Church of Scientology have denied the allegations about how his relationship with Naz came to be.)

In 2005, Tom Cruise briefly pursued a pre-fame Sofia Vergara . But things between them never took off reportedly because of their differences regarding religion.

Tom Cruise first connected with Katie Holmes — who'd spoken openly in interviews about her childhood crush on him — in April 2005 when, according to the rumor mill, they met to discuss a potential role for her in 2006's "Mission: Impossible III." Just weeks later, they made their red carpet debut as a couple at an event in Rome. The following month, Tom made headlines for jumping on a sofa while gushing over Katie during an interview with Oprah Winfrey on her eponymous talk show. Things only moved faster from there…

In June 2005 — just two months after they met — Tom Cruise proposed to Katie Holmes at the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Then in April 2006 — less than a year after they first connected — the "Dawson's Creek" alum gave birth to their daughter, Suri Cruise.

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes tied the knot at the Odescalchi Castle in Lake Bracciano, Italy, on Nov. 18, 2006. Less than six years later on June 29, 2012, she quietly filed for divorce amid whispers that their differences over Scientology were to blame.

In the summer of 2012, several dubious tabloid reports attempted to link Tom Cruise to fellow devout Scientologist Yolanda Pecoraro, who reportedly met the A-list actor for the first time in 2004. According to the rumor mill, he was interested in her at the time, though nothing ever came of the attraction. Nothing ever came of the talk in 2012 either! Despite the rumors that the Church of Scientology wanted to set up Tom with Yolanda in the wake of his split from Katie Holmes , they were never seen together in public. She ultimately married a different famous Scientologist: "Malcolm in the Middle" actor Chris Masterson. (They're pictured together in 2015.)

In late 2012, Tom Cruise got tongues wagging when he was seen spending time with Jennifer Akerman — the younger sister of his "Rock of Ages" co-star Malin Akerman — at a nightclub in Stockholm following the Swedish premiere of "Jack Reacher." But the actor's rep called the romance rumors "completely ridiculous" and insisted to E! News that the blonde beauty had a serious boyfriend at the time. Just a few weeks later, Tom shut down another set of false romance rumors when he was linked to Cynthia Jorge — then-manager of New York City's Beauty & Essex — after they were seen dancing together at a different NYC hotspot. A source told People magazine "it was nothing but a casual night out" while a New York Post source insisted the pair were "just friends."

The rumor mill worked overtime to connect Tom Cruise to former Bond girl Olga Kurylenko after they co-starred in the 2013 sci-fi love story "Oblivion" … even though she was dating Danny Huston at the time. There's no evidence they were ever anything other than colleagues.

Tom Cruise sparked romance rumors with fellow Scientologist Laura Prepon when they were seen dining together in Los Angeles in late 2013. Then in April 2014, Page Six reported that the duo had been "secretly dating" for months. But reps for both the action star and the "That '70s Show" alum insisted the rumors were "not true" and that the pair were just friends. (Laura eventually married a different actor: Ben Foster. She's since walked away from the church.)

In May 2017, the rumor mill erupted with buzz that Tom Cruise was dating "Mission: Impossible – Fallout" co-star Vanessa Kirby after they were photographed sharing an on-set smooch . (Previous tabloid reports alleged he'd fallen for her … and that he thought she was " perfect to be his next wife .") The following year, Vanessa called the rumors " disconcerting " — especially because she was in the midst of a long-term relationship with actor Callum Turner at the time.

In late 2020, The Sun reported that Tom Cruise and "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One" co-star Hayley Atwell were secretly dating after growing close on set. The following day, a People magazine source threw cold water on the British tabloid's report, insisting that the romance rumors were "not true at all." Yet the rumors persisted, although there was a spattering of reports in the summer of 2021 claiming the action star and the British beauty had gone their separate ways.

The co-stars were all smiles while attending Wimbledon together in 2021. Though fresh reports claimed they rekindled their romance in early 2022, The Sun published a story in June 2022 citing sources who said it was over again. "They get on really well, and have fantastic chemistry, which is why they decided to quietly give the relationship another try earlier this year. But what was working behind closed doors didn't work out so well when it was made public, and the fanfare around them as a couple exploded again," a source told the British tabloid. "They have now decided they are better as friends."

In July 2023, Hayley shot down the reports herself, telling the Independent the "weird [romance] rumors" felt "dirty" and "grubby" and that she views Tom and "M:I" franchise director Chris McQuarrie as "sort of two uncles," not love interests.

In May 2023, Tom Cruise once again got the rumor mill churning… this time with speculation that he'd fallen for a global pop star after he was seen chatting with Shakira at the 2023 Miami Formula One Grand Prix in Florida that month. Though they certainly looked comfortable together, TMZ reported that Shakira and Tom were not romantically involved and were at the F1 race because they'd both been invited by a mutual friend, driver Lewis Hamilton.

See the best pictures of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Nigeria

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Tom Cruise’s Girlfriend & Dating History

On screen, we’ve seen him come to rescue of his love interests countless times—whether as Maverick in Top Gun or Ethan Hunt in the Mission: Impossible franchise—but in real life, Tom Cruise’s dating history might as well be a blockbuster saga of its own.

Related: Get to know Tom Cruise’s kids with Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes

Cruise has been one of Hollywood’s golden boys for decades, and unsurprisingly, his romantic resume reads like a Who’s Who of the entertainment industry. From quick flings to multiple “I do’s,” the actor’s love life has already had more twists and turns than a Mission: Impossible plot—and even into his 60s, it doesn’t look like the Golden Globe-winner has any intentions of stopping his search for romance.

In a candid interview with Rolling Stone in 1986, a young Cruise shared his thoughts on dating. “ Relationships are hard ,” he admitted to the magazine. “You have to know when you’re going to be in a different place from someone else, you have to have the strength to separate. People are more prone to stay together for the security, which is something in my life that I have really not done, in relationships or even in business. If something’s not working, you’ve got to face it and move on.”

It looks like Tom was already giving us a sneak peek into the love life philosophy that would guide him throughout his career. Decades later, it has led to a dating history about as long as his filmography.

A look back at Tom Cruise’s girlfriends and dating history

Up ahead, we’re taking a look back at Tom Cruise’s dating history—from his early days in Hollywood to his high-profile marriages with Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes, and beyond.

Melissa Gilbert (1981-1983)

Long before his Mission Impossible days, Tom Cruise was like any other struggling actor with dreams of making it big. He was still going by his real name, Tom Mapother, when he met Little House on the Prairie actress Melissa Gilbert. Their relationship was a teenage romance—and Gilbert still remembers it fondly.

“Actually, when I dated him, he was Tom Mapother still,” Gilbert revealed on an episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen in 2014. She was about 16 or 17 when they met, and their relationship was more innocent than anything. “I did not have sex with him. We made out, but honestly, there was no sex,” she shared.

Gilbert even played a supporting role in Cruise’s early career. “He was like a struggling, starving actor and I was working. I actually bought him his first set of dishes,” she joked.

Cher (1985)

For a brief moment of ’80s bliss, Tom Cruise dated the legendary Cher. While their time together was short, it certainly left an impact on the Moonstruck actress.

In a 2013 appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen , Cher gushed about her “hot and heavy” relationship with Cruise, who ranked as one of her “top five” lovers ever. “He wasn’t a Scientologist then. It was pretty hot and heavy for a little minute,” she said.

Things seemed to end on a friendly note, as she only had positive things to say about Cruise. “He’s a great guy. The person that I knew was a great and lovable guy,” she added. We’ll take that as pretty high praise coming from a woman who’s dated some of Hollywood’s most eligible bachelors!

Mimi Rogers (1986-1990)

Tom Cruise’s first walk down the aisle was with actress Mimi Rogers. The couple tied the knot in May 1987, just a year after meeting. For Cruise, this relationship marked a major milestone in his personal life.

“I’d never been in love before,” he gushed to Rolling Stone before their split. “Since I’ve been with her, it’s opened me up a lot. I think it’s helped me be a better actor. We live a lot of life together. We share everything,” he said, adding, “She’s my best friend.”

Despite the initial passion, their relationship was short-lived. The pair divorced three years later in 1990, marking the end of Cruise’s first marriage.

Nicole Kidman (1990-2001)

One of Cruise’s most famous relationships to date was with Australian actress Nicole Kidman. Their union was the stuff of Hollywood dreams, spanning a decade and including two adopted children , Isabella Jane, born in 1992, and Connor Antony, born in 1995.

Cruise and Kidman seemed to have it all: successful careers, a beautiful family, and a love that appeared to be pretty unshakeable. But by 2001, the couple surprised fans with news of their separation.

Cruise remained tight-lipped about the reasons behind their split . “She knows why, and I know why,” he told Vanity Fair in October 2001. “She’s the mother of my children, and I wish her well. I think that you just move on. And I don’t say that lightly. I don’t say that with anything. Things happen in life, and you do everything you can, and in every possible way, and there’s a point at which you just sometimes have to face the brutal reality.”

Penelope Cruz (2001-2004)

After his divorce from Nicole Kidman, Cruise found love again with Spanish actress Penelope Cruz. The pair met on the set of Vanilla Sky in 2000 and went on to date for three years. Cruise appeared to be pretty smitten from the start: “As a person and on film, she invites you in, and she’s incredibly romantic, and yet, real, you know?” he  told  Vanity Fair  in January 2002. “I thought, My God, I’m your boyfriend. You’re my girlfriend! … Cruise and Cruz!”

However, like many relationships in Hollywood, the demands of their careers ultimately took a toll. The couple broke things off in March 2004, and a source told People magazine at the time that the relationship simply “ran its course.” The source added that their separate and distance-filled filming schedules had a lot to do with the breakup.

Sofia Vergara (2005)

You didn’t have this one on your radar, did you now? As it turns out, Tom Cruise’s dating history includes a brief encounter with none other than Sofia Vergara. According to Andrew Morton, author of Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography , this rumored romance was more complicated than it seemed on the surface.

As part of his work with the church of Scientology, Morton claims that Cruise had to provide church leaders with a list of women he was interested in pursuing. Vergara, then an up-and-coming actor in the early 2000s, was reportedly on that list.

However, the relationship never fully materialized. Morton wrote, “It soon became clear that she was being auditioned for the biggest role of her life—Mrs. Tom Cruise. It was made clear that if she took the part, she would have to renounce her Catholic faith and convert to Scientology.” This apparent ultimatum seems to have been the deal-breaker for Vergara.

Katie Holmes (2005-2012)

Tom Cruise’s relationship with Katie Holmes was nothing short of a media sensation. Their whirlwind romance, punctuated by Cruise’s infamous couch-jumping incident on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show, captivated tons of attention during the early days of their relationship.

The couple welcomed daughter Suri in April 2006 and tied the knot in a lavish Italian ceremony later that year. For a time, they seemed to be the perfect Hollywood family. However, after nearly six years of marriage, Holmes filed for divorce in 2012. Details of their split remain private, but include many whispers about Scientology being at the crux of their split. What we do know, of course, is that the end of “TomKat” marked another major closed chapter in Cruise’s complex romantic history.

Elsina Khayrova (2023-2024)

In December 2023, Us Weekly confirmed that Cruise had been quietly dating Russian socialite Elsina Khayrova. The relationship had reportedly been going on “for a while” before they made their public debut at a party in London.

At the time, an insider shared with the magazine, “They’re very happy. And Tom’s extremely confident about it working out for the long term.” The couple apparently met through mutual friends in England, with the source explaining, “What started as a basic friendship quickly turned into something more special.”

As of 2024, however, it seems the relationship had run its course. “They weren’t gelling and realized they weren’t romantically compatible,” a source later told Us Weekly. According to the insider, Khayrova was the one to call things off. “There’s no bad blood between them,” the source added. “They just had different ideas of what their relationship was going to be.”

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When Tom Cruise and Cher secretly dated in the 1980s: 'There was a connection'

4 December 2023, 15:01

By Tom Eames

Tom Cruise and Cher are two of Hollywood's most iconic stars, but you might not know that they were once an item.

Back in the mid-to-late 1980s, Tom Cruise was making a name for himself as one of Hollywood's leading men, with roles in films like Top Gun , Legend and Risky Business .

Meanwhile, Cher had already been a massive star for two decades. She first found fame as part of the pop duo Sonny & Cher with ex-husband Sonny Bono, and then went on to become a successful solo artist, TV presenter and actress.

• Cher's 10 greatest songs ever, ranked
• Cher facts: Singer's age, husbands, children, real name and more revealed

Cher - who is 16 years older than Tom - first met the actor in 1985 when Tom was 23 and she was 38. They met at Madonna and Sean Penn’s wedding (which is amazing in itself) and they apparently went on to have a short fling.

Speaking about when they next met, Cher told Event : " Then a bunch of people who were dyslexic were invited to the White House, and Tom and I are both dyslexic.

"We didn’t go out till way later, but there definitely was a connection there."

• Remembering the time Cher performed a hilarious medley with the Jackson 5
• When Sonny & Cher reunited to perform 'I Got You Babe' for the very last time

Cher had previously told TV host James Corden that Tom was among her "top five lovers", and had also told Oprah Winfrey that he could have been a "great big romance" if they hadn’t been forced to part ways due to their busy schedules.

When asked by Oprah about their date, Cher responded: "That was a long date — I lived in his apartment.”

Who is Cher's All-Time Best Lover? | WWHL

Cher also dated Tom Cruise's Top Gun co-star,  Val Kilmer , from 1982 to 1984. She once said: “When we kissed, I thought my head would shoot right off my body."

When asked if she and Tom were still friends, she said: "Yeah! Though I don’t get what he does, that whole Scientology thing. I can’t understand it so I just… don’t."

Cher has been married twice. Her first marriage was with Sonny Bono from 1969 to 1975, followed by musician Gregg Allman from 1975 to 1979.

She is currently thought to be single, recently telling Event : "I’m still on the lookout. The problem I have with all the boyfriends lately is that I don’t want to go any place with them because you can’t keep a relationship going in this kind of goldfish bowl, where everything you do and every picture you have taken will be on Instagram. There’s no way to keep something special."

Meanwhile, Tom Cruise was previously in relationships with Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman , Penelope Cruz and Katie Holmes.

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A Look At Tom Cruise's Lengthy Dating And Relationship History

Tom Cruise is the epitome of the modern movie star. As he embarks on his fifth decade as one of the world's most famous actors, Cruise's undeniable star power still draws audiences into movie theaters, a stupendous feat in the era of streaming and social media. But it's not just his dedication to his craft — like jumping off a cliff while riding a motorcycle for 2023's "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning" — or the billions of dollars his films have raked in at the global box office that keep Cruise in the pop culture conversation. Since he arrived on the scene, Cruise's personal life has grabbed plenty of headlines, and decades after making it in Tinseltown, it still does.

For someone who allegedly once considered becoming a monk, Cruise's love life has been anything but cloistered. He's been linked to everyone from television sweethearts to cinematic ingenues and even a pop icon. Cruise's relationships and marriages have long been the subject of tabloid speculation ... and not all the attention has been good. Do you think you can handle the truth (as well as gossip rag chatter and media reports) about his love life? If so, read on and take a look at Tom Cruise's lengthy dating and relationship history.

Tom Cruise's first Hollywood tryst was with Melissa Gilbert

In the early 1980s, young Thomas Cruise Mapother IV was an eager, fresh-faced young actor ready to take on Hollywood, and his first Tinseltown romance happened so early in his career that he had still yet to change his name . When Tom Cruise dated "Little House on the Prairie" actor Melissa Gilbert, she was the recognizable star. An Emmy-nominated showbiz veteran with years of acting experience under her belt by the time she was a teen, Gilbert later shared on " Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen " that she and Cruise went out when she was 16 or 17 years old. While there was no sex during their time together, Gilbert admitted that she and Cruise made out.

Gilbert and Cruise's relationship was short-lived, but it wasn't the last time the young stars would cross paths. Gilbert moved on to a relationship with Rob Lowe, Cruise's co-star in the 1983 teen drama "The Outsiders." Allegedly, Gilbert and Cruise still hooked up while she was with Lowe, but any possible clandestine love triangles didn't stop the trio from hanging out together publicly. 

In 2021, Lowe shared a throwback photo of himself, Gilbert, Cruise, and fellow actor Michelle Meyrink on an outing together on his Instagram . Lowe captioned the photo in part, "Double date 1980s style!"

Heather Locklear couldn't take his cringe dance moves

Tom Cruise was still a relatively unknown actor when he went on his one and only date with TV star Heather Locklear. She was simultaneously appearing on the hit TV shows "T.J. Hooker" and "Dynasty," and he was grabbing roles in movies like "Endless Love" and "Taps," when the pair hit the town in the early '80s. Clearly, she had the star power, but Cruise was on the brink of fame — and according to Locklear's recollection of their date, he was already making some moves that would make him a movie star.

During a 2013 appearance on "Chelsea Lately" (via the  Daily Mail ), Locklear claimed Cruise busted out some embarrassing dance moves at a club that left her bewildered. She likened them to the ones in his famous 1983 breakout movie "Risky Business," where he slides across a living room in nothing but a button-up shirt, briefs, and white socks. "You just kind of stand there and don't know what to do. Do you dance around him? It was weird. I just sat down," she said.

Locklear didn't pinpoint the exact year of their date, but it was definitely before Cruise was mega famous. Admittedly weirded out by the future movie star, Locklear didn't date Cruise again. And although "Risky Business" writer and director Paul Brickman credits himself for the movie's iconic dance scene, one can't help but wonder if one of Cruise's moves from his Locklear date actually made the final cut.

From friendzone to lovers with Rebecca De Mornay

Tom Cruise and his "Risky Business" co-star, Rebecca De Mornay, had a two-and-a-half-year relationship, but the pair didn't exactly hit it off at first. De Mornay later dished with a laugh to Celebrity Page , "I will say that I thought he was very annoying when we first started [filming]." Clearly, she got over Cruise-induced aggravation as they became more than just colleagues, but when they were doing press for the movie, the pair was publicized as merely being close pals. 

Although they played coy to the media, their co-star Curtis Armstrong's "Revenge of the Nerd" memoir (via The Hollywood Reporter ) later revealed that they were apparently openly and intensely engaging with each other during production. Their budding relationship was interrupted, however, by on-set appearances by De Mornay's then-beau, Harry Dean Stanton, who eventually got miffed enough about their affair that he went to confront Cruise about it, as De Mornay recalled to Vanity Fair . She admittedly left the "Paris, Texas" actor for Cruise, and the couple quickly became media darlings and paparazzi targets. They broke up just before Cruise began work on his 1986 blockbuster film "Top Gun."

She might have dumped him for Cruise, but De Mornay's relationship with Stanton proved to have staying power, while her time with Cruise stayed strictly in the past. Remembering the late Stanton, who died in 2017, De Mornay told Vanity Fair, "Harry Dean and I are best friends, and Tom and I don't talk."

His short-lived but influential marriage to Mimi Rogers

Tom Cruise's first marriage was to actor Mimi Rogers, and while short-lived, it proved to immensely impact Cruise's future. He and Rogers met at a dinner party when Cruise's 1986 blockbuster film "Top Gun" was in development. The couple married in a small, private ceremony in New York state in May 1987, with Cruise's "The Outsiders" co-star, Emilio Estevez, on best man duty. Rogers, a second-generation Scientologist, is credited for introducing Cruise to Scientology, per The Daily Beast , an organization whose influence would reportedly play a big part in his love life.

While they kept their relationship fairly low-key, rumors swirled in the press around their unsuccessful attempts at having children together, sparking years of speculation about Cruise's sexuality. He and Rogers quietly separated in 1989, and their split was officially announced the following year . Publicly, their divorce was partially chalked up Cruise's ascent into superstardom, with his focus on work leaving little time for love. Privately, alleged infidelity — including with his "Days of Thunder" co-star and future wife, Nicole Kidman — and reported meddling from Scientology officials  were apparently factors in their breakup. 

When asked about his first marriage in 1994, Cruise blurted to Vanity Fair, "It was a long time ago. I really don't think about it." Years later, Rogers admitted it took time for the exes to once again be on good terms. In 2001, she told People they were "nice and friendly," but added, "Between his life and mine, it's not like we have a lot of time to see each other."

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman were the '90s it couple

When Tom Cruise saw Nicole Kidman in the 1989 Australian film "Dead Calm," he wanted to meet her. Shortly thereafter, they co-starred in 1990's "Days of Thunder," and one of the biggest celebrity relationships of that decade was off to a racing start. Cruise and Kidman reportedly hooked up while filming the movie, and after his divorce from Mimi Rogers was finalized, they tied the knot on Christmas Eve 1990. Dubbed "Hollywood's Most Romantic Couple" by People , Cruise shared with Vanity Fair that Kidman was his soul mate, and she told the publication, "He's amazingly romantic. He puts so much work into us." In 1992, they adopted their daughter, Isabella, and would welcome son Connor via adoption three years later.

In true power couple fashion, Cruise and Kidman continued to work together throughout their relationship. In addition to "Days of Thunder," they co-starred in the films "Far and Away" and "Eyes Wide Shut," the latter of which was an intense 15-month movie shoot that Cruise credited with making their marriage stronger. But a year after "Eyes Wide Shut" dropped, their marriage was over. Cruise filed for divorce in December 2000, citing "irreconcilable differences," per Entertainment Weekly . At the time, their rep denied Scientology was a reason for their split, but subsequent reports have alleged otherwise. 

When asked why they divorced by Vanity Fair in 2002, Cruise only said, "She knows why, and I know why. She's the mother of my children, and I wish her well."

He and Penélope Cruz gave tabloids plenty to talk about

Tom Cruise's next relationship was with Spanish actor Penélope Cruz. They met in 2000 on the set of "Vanilla Sky" — and Cruise was technically still legally married to Nicole Kidman when he was first romantically linked to Cruz in the summer of 2001. Cruise and Kidman's divorce was finalized on August 8 of that year, and it's since become a part of pop culture history thanks to an infamous photo of Kidman's alleged celebration. 

Cruise and Cruz soon caused a stir as they made their red-carpet debut at the premiere of her film "Captain Corelli's Mandolin." Cruz embraced Cruise's public support, telling  ABC News , "He came and shared [the spotlight] with me. It was special for me that he wanted to share it with me that way." Cruise didn't spare any romantic gestures, telling Marie Claire (via Entertainment Weekly ) in 2003 that he would surprise Cruz by cooking her favorite foods and drawing baths for whenever she arrived home. 

Despite any notions of domestic bliss, however, the relationship proved to be dramatic fodder for the tabloids. Things actually got so intense in the rumor department that Cruz sued Australian tabloid New Idea for defamation for peddling lies about the couple. Per Variety , the outlet published a retraction and issued an apology. Unfortunately, Cruz's legal victory didn't stop the gossip, and in 2004, she and Cruise amicably broke up after three years together. A source told People , "The relationship just ran its course and they decided not to be girlfriend and boyfriend anymore."

Age was just a number for Cher and Tom Cruise

One of Tom Cruise's more curious romantic trysts was with entertainment superstar Cher. 16 years his senior, Cher was already an established music and TV star and well into the movie star phase of her career when she met Cruise at Sean Penn and Madonna's 1985 Malibu wedding. Apparently, Cher's bright purple hair at the nuptials didn't spark an immediate love connection with the young actor, but she and Cruise reconnected later that year at a White House event that raised awareness around dyslexia, a learning disorder both stars have been diagnosed with. While they didn't hook up at the event, Cher later told the  Daily Mail , "We didn't go out till way later, but there definitely was a connection there."

Soon, however, Cruise was apparently making Cher say "whoa" in more ways than one. Cher previously revealed to Oprah Winfrey  that they'd even lived together in his apartment, saying, "He was so wonderful, and I was so crazy about him." Cher further praised Cruise on " Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen ," sharing that she considers him in the top five of her greatest lovers. 

For his part, Cruise has stayed mum on his romance with Cher , but there seems to be no animosity between them. Calling Cruise a "great, lovable guy," Cher further told Cohen on "WWHL" (via Page Six ), "It was pretty hot and heavy for a little minute."

His blink-and-you-missed-it fling with Sofía Vergara

Among many of Tom Cruise's romantic trysts was a brief interlude with a pre-"Modern Family" Sofía Vergara. When the two got together in the early '00s, Vergara's small roles in Hollywood movies like "Big Trouble," "The 24th Day," and "Soul Plane" weren't creating a path to superstardom. Cruise, who was having trouble finding a girlfriend, allegedly made Scientology honchos a list of potential love interests — and Vergara made the cut. 

According to Andrew Morton's book " Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography ," the relatively unknown Vergara was set up to meet Cruise by Will Smith at a pre-Oscars bash in 2005. Hitting it off, Vergara began hanging out with Cruise, even bringing her son, Manolo, with her so that he could get to know his kids, Isabella and Connor. Things were seemingly moving forward in their relationship at an incredible clip, so much so that there were allegedly even talks of marriage mere weeks after they got together.

But for Vergara, the ever-looming presence of Scientology reportedly proved to be too much. When it was allegedly demanded that she convert to Scientology to continue their relationship, Vergara is said to have balked. A pal claimed to Morton, "She was fundamentally terrified by Scientology. She sincerely believed that she would be struck down by God and burn in hell if she joined." Needless to say, the Cruise-Vergara era was over before it had a chance to get started.

Nazanin Boniadi allegedly didn't pass the girlfriend audition

In the mid-'00s, Tom Cruise was looking for love, and — allegedly with the help of the Church of Scientology — he tried to find it with Iranian-born British actor Nazanin Boniadi. The "Homeland" star was already a Scientologist when she was reportedly chosen to become Cruise's girlfriend by the organization following a round of auditions in late 2004. According to a 2012 report by  Vanity Fair , though Boniadi wasn't initially told that her top-secret Scientology project was preparing her to meet Cruise, she hesitantly embraced the chance to be with him and decided to take the attention from the actor as a compliment.

While Cruise reportedly didn't hold back on the PDA, Boniadi was more reserved, which purportedly irritated the star. As their relationship progressed, Boniadi felt increasingly confined by the arrangement, which allegedly included confidentiality agreements and being controlled by Cruise and Scientology officials. Things came to a breaking point when Boniadi was at Cruise's Telluride, Colorado home and asked Church of Scientology head David Miscavige to repeat himself, allegedly leaving Miscavige insulted and Cruise appalled at the apparent slight. By January 2005, Boniadi and Cruise were done, with the actual breakup reportedly conducted not by Cruise, but by Scientology officials. 

Per the Independent , the Church of Scientology denied these claims. In 2012, Boniadi name-checked Cruise on an anti-Scientology diss track: "But we all know how it is, there ain't no road to freedom / It's a blind alley, like Kirstie Alley / Travolta and Cruise, but we ain't no fools."

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' marriage defined an era

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' famous romance defined the celebrity-obsessed pop culture of the mid-'00s. Holmes was apparently one of many women who allegedly auditioned to be Tom Cruise's girlfriend , and she seemingly nailed it by admitting her childhood crush on him. Cruise and Holmes took things public in 2005 during the whirlwind publicity tours for their movies "The War of the Worlds" and "Batman Begins." Cruise jumping on Oprah Winfrey's couch and sparring with Matt Lauer about the history of psychiatry? It all happened that spring and summer amidst the heat of the "TomKat" romance. Less than two years after meeting, Cruise and Holmes would welcome their child, Suri, and get married in an extravagant Italian ceremony that reportedly cost $3 million.

Once the dust settled on their marriage, it seems all was not what it seemed to be. Confined by their intense fame, Holmes admitted to Vanity Fair reporter Maureen Orth in 2012, "Oh, we don't go outside very much," and Scientology was reportedly a constant presence in their private lives. Holmes filed for divorce that June, allegedly blindsiding Cruise with the move . Thanks to help from her attorney father, Holmes had a prenuptial agreement in place, and their divorce was finalized in less than two weeks. 

Of her split from Cruise, Holmes — who was awarded primary custody of Suri — told InStyle  in 2020, "That time was intense. It was a lot of attention. ... We had some funny moments out and about in public." To say the least, Katie!

Was his alleged romance with Hayley Atwell impossible?

After his headline-grabby divorce from Katie Holmes in 2012, Tom Cruise kept his personal life mostly to himself throughout much of the 2010s. Cruise's post-Holmes filmography was mostly action-hero fare, including installments of his "Jack Reacher" and "Mission: Impossible" franchises. His public persona became less centered around buoyant displays of affection, as it had in the '00s, and more about Cruise's death-defying film stunt work. But by late 2020, Cruise was rumored to have a new love interest in Hayley Atwell, his "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning" co-star.

The Sun reported that Cruise and Atwell had bonded while filming in both the U.K. and Rome, having become close during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. The following July, the duo took in Wimbledon together, further sparking romance chatter in the media. By September 2021, however, Cruise and Atwell reportedly called it quits, taking the highway to the friendzone. However, they apparently got back together in early 2022, but split up yet again shortly after they both attended the May 2022 premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick." A source cited by  The U.S. Sun partially blamed public scrutiny for the breakup, claiming, "What was working behind closed doors didn't work out so well when it was made public, and the fanfare around them as a couple exploded again. They have now decided they are better as friends."

But were Cruise and Atwell ever actually an item or just a convenient tabloid topic? In May 2023, Atwell flatly denied they were ever romantically involved to Country & Town House .

Tom Cruise and Shakira sparked rumors at the race track

In May 2023, Tom Cruise was linked to singing superstar Shakira after the duo was spotted at a Formula 1 Grand Prix together in Miami. A source dished to Page Six  about the possibility of a love connection and claimed, "He is extremely interested in pursuing her. There is chemistry." The insider further hinted that perhaps Shakira "need[ed] a soft pillow to land on, and that could be Tom" after her dramatic breakup with soccer star Gerard Piqué. 

Sure, Cruise and Shakira chatted it up at an event, and he even reportedly gifted her flowers — but was it the start of a beautiful relationship? According to sources in Shakira's camp, the answer was a resounding "no." While insiders couldn't directly speak to Cruise's alleged floral fixation for the singer, they told TMZ , "She's very much single. ... Shakira's just not interested in dating right now." The sources also clarified that both Cruise and Shakira were merely guests of Formula 1 superstar racer Lewis Hamilton, hence being spotted together. 

Shakira's hips don't lie, but perhaps the tabloids sometimes do.

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A Deep-Dive into Tom Cruise’s Relationship Timeline

Renowned for his roles in some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters, Tom Cruise’s relationships have also been a source of intrigue over the years.

From his first marriage in the 1980s to his high-profile relationships and subsequent divorces, Cruise’s love life has been as much a topic of conversation as his cinematic achievements.

While he’s been known to keep things private in more recent years, here, we take a closer look at the key relationships in Tom Cruise’s life.

Who has Tom Cruise dated?

Elsina Khayrova (December 2023 – April 2024)

Since his divorce from Katie Holmes, Tom has kept his personal life more private, with no confirmed relationships being made public.

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This has not stopped rumours from flying, with sources claiming that the actor was in a relationship with Russian model Elsina Khayrova in December of 2023.

According to Us Weekly sources, the 61-year-old actor and 36-year-old model’s relationship, “started as a basic friendship [and] quickly turned into something more special”.

As of April 2024, however, it’s reported that the pair has split up. The alleged reasoning? A former partner’s media confessions.

Elsina’s ex-husband, Russian oligarch Dmitry Tstetkov spoke to the Daily Mail regarding his relationship with his ex and her newfound partnership where he warned Tom to keep his “eyes and wallet wide open”.

A source told Page Six that this was the reasoning behind the rumoured couple’s split: “He’s filming and can’t be shooting and have her husband saying stuff every time he is mentioned in the press.”

Katie Holmes (2005 – 2012)

Together for nearly a decade, Tom’s relationship with Katie Holmes began in 2005, leading to a highly publicised engagement and marriage in 2006. Their daughter, Suri , was born the same year.

In spite of their PDA-packed relationship, Katie filed for divorce in 2012, which was finalised quickly and quietly, where she also received primary custody of Suri.

Penélope Cruz (2001 – 2004)

Following his split from Nicole Kidman, Tom started dating Penélope Cruz, whom he met while working on the film Vanilla Sky. After going public in 2001, the pair kept things relatively private. Tom did, however, reveal in an interview with Marie Claire US that he enjoyed cooking for Penelope

“She’ll come home, and I’ll have her favourite kind of food made, have a bath drawn. I like doing stuff like that,” he told the publication in 2003.

Their relationship lasted until 2004, with the challenges of a public relationship being cited as a reason for their breakup.

Nicole Kidman (1990 – 2001)

Tom Cruise met Nicole Kidman on the set of Days of Thunder and they quickly became a couple, marrying in December 1990.

They later went on to star in two more films together, Far and Away (1992) and Eyes Wide Shut (1999). During the same year as the release of Far and Away , the couple adopted their first child together, Isabella, followed by their son Connor in 1995.

However, in February 2001, to the shock of fans and the media alike, Cruise filed for divorce from Kidman. The announcement was unexpected and left many speculating about the reasons behind their separation.

“Citing the difficulties inherent in divergent careers which constantly keep them apart, they concluded that an amicable separation seemed best for both of them at this time,” a rep for the pair said in a public statement.

Mimi Rogers (1986-1990)

After meeting at a dinner party in 1985, Tom Cruise entered into a relationship with Mimi Rogers, where they got married in 1987.

Just before their divorce, Tom told Rolling Stone , “I wouldn’t have been able to make it through Born, I don’t think, without her being there. There were times I was so physically exhausted, and the stuff was very emotional.”

Not long after, he filed for divorce, without much public disclosure about the reasoning.

In 2001 interview with People , however, Mimi said, “You cease to be an individual,” she said. “No matter what the article is, it’s ‘Tom Cruise‘s wife’.”

Olga is a digital writer for New Idea. With a focus on lifestyle content, she enjoys talking about all things beauty, fashion, and wellbeing .

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