Tom Cruise makes rare comment about ex-wife Nicole Kidman in revealing new interview
Tom Cruise has his eyes on the past.
The actor, 62, made a rare comment about his ex-wife Nicole Kidman, whom he was married to from 1990 to 2001.
While speaking to Sight and Sound magazine, Cruise detailed his experience in Stanley Kubrick's 1999 thriller 'Eyes Wife Shut' in which he starred opposite the actress, 57.
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'It was a great experience. I was very excited to do it. I knew Stanley's movies very well and I was introduced to him through Sydney Pollack,' he told the outlet. 'So Stanley called Sydney 'cause he wanted me to make a movie. He sent me a fax.'
9 Tom Cruise on the cover of Sight and Sound.
Sight And Sound
Recounting what came next, Cruise shared, 'I flew out to his house and I landed in his backyard. I read the script the day before and we spent the day talking about it. I knew all of his films. I spoke to Scorsese about him and Sydney Pollack… so I knew what he did and how he worked. Then it was basically he and I getting to know each other. And when we were doing that, I suggested Nicole play the role [of Alice]. Because obviously she's a great actress.'
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The film follows Dr. Bill Hartford (Cruise) and his wife Alice (Kidman), who had sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill then becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter of his own but gets in over his head.
'I knew it was going to be a long shoot. He was like, 'No, no, no. We'll finish in three or four months.' And I said, 'Stanley, look, I'm here for you. Whatever it's going to take we're going to do this…' I thought the film was very interesting, and I wanted to have that experience,' Cruise expressed. 'When I go to make a movie, I do a lot of detailed investigation and a lot of time with the people before I commit so that I understand what they need and want and they understand me and how we can work together and really create something very special.'
9 Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
WireImage
9 Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise in 'Eyes Wide Shut.'
©Warner Bros/courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection
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The film also starred Sydney Pollack and Todd Field and was the 'Mission Impossible' star referred to as 'a very unique experience.'
'Not a large crew. We arrived in the summer and basically we just started testing… the script was just an idea. We [were] constantly rewriting the scenes and shooting the scenes and then reshooting the scenes to really find the tone of the film.'
Cruise and Kidman met in 1990 when the two starred opposite one another in 'Days of Thunder. However, the 'Jerry Maguire' star previously married Mimi Rogers in 1987 and the two finalized their divorce in February 1990 just 10 months before he tied the knot with the 'Perfect Couple' alum in December 1990.
9 Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise in 'Far and Away.'
©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection
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Cruise and Kidman married in a private ceremony in Colorado when they were 28 and 23 years old.
'I was so young when I got married,' Kidman reflected to Red magazine in 2016. 'I look back now and I'm like, 'What?''
After the wedding, the Hollywood icons went on to work together in the drama 'Far and Away' in 1992 before adopting their daughter Isabella that same year.
In 1995 Cruise and Kidman welcomed son Connor via adoption.
9 Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise.
Leonardo Cendamo
Reflecting on that time in her life, the actress spoke about working on 'Eyes Wide Shut' with her other half while talking to The New York Times in 2020. As she put it, 'We were happily married through that.'
'We would go go-kart racing after [intense] scenes. We'd rent out a place and go racing at three in the morning.'
But almost two years after the project premiered, the duo had split.
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9 Nicole Kidman and husband Tom Cruise arrive at Sydney Kingsford Smith airport and introduce their children Connor and Isabella to the media.
Getty Images
A rep for Kidman and Cruise said in a February 2001 statement: '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.'
The 'Top Gun' vet went on to date Penélope Cruz before tying the knot with Katie Holmes in 2006. The two welcomed daughter Suri that same year, before splitting in 2012.
Holmes, 46, said in a 2013 deposition that she wanted the divorce in order 'to protect Suri from Scientology.'
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9 Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman attend the premiere of 'The Portrait of a Lady.'
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The 19-year-old has reportedly been estranged from her father for years with a source telling Page Six in 2023 that Cruise 'has not seen' his daughter 'in a very long time and is not a part of her life.'
The 'Dawson's Creek' actress gushed over her close-knit relationship with Suri to Glamour in 2023 magazine, stating she likes to 'protect' Suri from the public eye 'because she was so visible at a young age.'
'I'm very grateful to be a parent, to be her parent. She's an incredible person. She's my heart.'
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9 Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman.
LM Otero Invision/AP
Cruise is now linked to Ana de Armas, 37, – who he continues to spark romance rumors with. Last weekend, the pair were caught leaving David Beckham's 50th birthday party together in London.
Kidman, for her part, was engaged to Lenny Kravitz in 2003 but the pair split shortly after. In June 2006, she married Keith Urban at St. Patrick's Estate in the beachside suburb of Manly in Sydney. Two years later, Kidman and Urban welcomed Sunday, 16, with Faith, 14, following in 2010.
In 2025, Kidman revealed the key to her successful 19 year marriage with Urban, 57.
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9 Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise.
ABACAUSA.COM
The 'A Family Affair' star told W Magazine she sings in the shower but also hears 'Keith singing in the shower, and I'll hear his new songs forming.'
'We have a double shower. The double-headed shower: key to a successful marriage. Separate commodes and a double-headed shower!'
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