Nicole Kidman‘s announcement of her divorce has brought her first husband, Tom Cruise, back into the spotlight. Cruise, famous for the Mission: Impossible movies, has reportedly spoken out about their 2001 divorce amid Kidman’s recent split.
A source close to Cruise said he sees Kidman’s divorce from Keith Urban after 19 years as “karma” for how she handled their own very public breakup.
“When Tom and Nicole split, he caught all the blame, and she got all the sympathy. He was painted as the bad guy … that stuck with him for years,” an insider told International Business Times.
The source also said Cruise felt he was treated unfairly during their split. Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise were married from 1990 to 2001, during which time they adopted two children, Isabella and Connor.
Their highly publicized divorce ended the glamorous and powerful celebrity union, with media speculation often centred on Kidman’s alleged resistance to the Church of Scientology.
“Tom was really stung by the way Nicole handled their break-up. She went on TV, made digs about his height, and painted herself as the victim, while he stayed silent and took the hits,” the source stated.
Kidman Chooses Privacy Over Retaliation
Now that Kidman is dealing with the end of her second marriage, she is reportedly not pleased with Cruise’s recent comments. Reports say she found his timing and attitude petty. Kidman is focusing on her privacy and her daughters as she faces reports of estrangement, infidelity, and busy schedules that affected her marriage to Urban.
She reportedly wishes Cruise had stayed quiet. She felt he should have focused on his own life, especially after his recent breakup from actress Ana de Armas.
Although Cruise reportedly feels vindicated and believes he was right that the Urban-Kidman relationship was “hyped up,” his public comments are not appreciated.
“At the same time, he’s also giving himself a little credit and telling people close to him that this is karma at work,” the source said. “Bottom line: He thought they were a hyped up couple who clearly had very little in common from the start. Now he feels he’s been proved right.”
Kidman’s preference is clear: she wants her ex-husband to stay silent and focus on his own relationships, so she can handle her divorce in private.
The Oscar winner is especially surprised because just a few months ago, Tom Cruise was publicly showering her with praise. Cruise made a rare and complimentary comment about his ex-wife, Nicole Kidman, marking the first time he has spoken about her publicly in the press in over two decades.
Cruise acknowledged the mother of his children during a discussion about their intense 1999 erotic thriller, Eyes Wide Shut, directed by the late Stanley Kubrick. Cruise recalled his involvement in casting the actress, who went on to portray his character Bill’s wife, Alice.
“I suggested Nicole play the role,” the actor told the British Film Institute’s Sight and Sound magazine in an interview published in Deadline. “Because obviously she’s a great actress.”
This positive remark is a significant shift, as the two Hollywood icons had maintained a strict public silence regarding their relationship since finalizing their divorce.
