There may have been rumours of a spark between Shakira and Tom Cruise this week – but the A-list actor has certainly had a checkered personal life in the past.
According to Page Six, a source said the 60-year-old Mission Impossible actor was ‘extremely interested in pursuing’ the Colombian singer, 46, as ‘there is chemistry’ between them.
Shakira is recently single, having split from her ex-husband Girard Pique in the past few months.
And while no relationship between the pair has been confirmed, prompting some to suggest that the Colombian singer may have had a lucky escape, due to the actor’s relationship history.
Here FEMAIL reveals the very mixed personal life of the Top Gun actor…
Shakira (pictured) was recently spotted with Tom Cruise (pictured) at the 2023 Miami Formula One Grand Prix
1989: A hasty divorce – speeded up by Scientology?
The actor split from his first wife Mimi Rodgers at the end of 1989, with some speculating that senior Scientologists stepped in to speed up the divorce process – claims the church has denied (pictured: Tom Cruise and Mimi Rodgers at the 1986 premiere of The Color of Money in Los Angeles)
Tom Cruise, who has been married three times, tied the knot with his first wife Mimi Rodgers in 1987.
Mimi is believed to be one of Tom’s first links to the Church of Scientology which he has since become closely associated with. She has since left the organisation.
However, sadly the pairing was not to last, with the couple splitting by the end of 1989.
It doesn’t appear as though Tom look a long time to mourn the demise of his marriage though, as he quickly met his second wife Nicole Kidman.
In a 2016 interview with People magazine, Nicole said the pair fell in love while making the movie, which reportedly started shooting in December 1989.
According to some reports, senior Scientologists were drafted in to expedite the breakup between Tom and Mimi, so he could embark on a relationship with Nicole.
It has been reported that Mimi’s father, who had been a prominent member of the church, had left in the early 80s, creating some hostility towards Mimi from the organisation.
This is according to former Scientology church executive Mike Rinder, co-host of the series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath and author of A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology.
In his book, Mike Rinder claimed that Scientologists talked Mimi into the divorce, paving the way for the new marriage, adding that this was ‘highly unusual and would never have happened with a normal Scientologist’.
The Church of Scientology strongly denied these claims in a statement to Page Six, describing them as ‘utterly ludicrous’.
2011: ‘Shocking’ ex-wife Nicole Kidman with their 2011 divorce
Nicole Kidman, Tom’s second wife, was reportedly blindsided when he filed for divorce in 2001, after 11 years of marriage (pictured: Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise at the Eyes Wide Shut premiere in Los Angeles in 1999)
Nicole was Tom’s second wife, with the pair tying the knot in 1990 after meeting on the set of Days of Thunder.
Aged just 23 when they wed, Nicole became a mother when she was 25, with the couple adopting daughter Isabella Jane, followed three years later by son Connor.
They enjoyed their status as one of Hollywood’s most celebrated pairings for more than a decade, until their shock split in 2001.
That year, Tom walked out on the relationship, reportedly leaving the actress in a state of ‘utter shock.’
He filed for divorce that same year, citing ‘irreconcilable differences.’
Speaking about the split a year later, Nicole said: ‘I thought our life together was perfect.
‘It took me a very long time to heal. It was a shock to my system.
‘We were in a bubble, just the two of us. We became very dependent on one another. I was reeling with Tom.
‘I would have gone to the ends of the earth for him…. I was totally smitten – I fell madly, passionately in love.’
While a specific reason for the split has never been confirmed, according to reports, one reason for Tom leaving Nicole was her refusal to join the Church of Scientology.
Isabella and Connor are both devoted members of The Church of Scientology, like their father, and it is thought they may not be in touch with their mother.
2001: ‘Auditioned’ actresses to become his next wife
One of the more unusual relationship rumours swirling around the keen Scientologist is that he auditioned actresses when looking for a girlfriend following his divorce from Nicole Kidman.
While he would eventually end up marrying Katie Holmes, some reports say the Dawson’s Creek star may not have been his first choice of partner.
According to claims made by Lawrence Wright in his controversial book Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood and the Prison Belief, Scientology elders were invited by Tom to hold screen tests to find his new wife.
This claim has been denied by the church of Scientology’s lawyers.
But according to the book, a number of actors were ‘auditioned’, including Jessica Alba, Scarlett Johansson, and Lindsay Lohan.
Speaking in 2015, actor Anette Iren Johansen said she’d been among those to ‘audition’ for the wifely role, and claimed she’d been quizzed on her sexual history.
According to Anette, a church elder asked if she had ever had sex with a woman, or engaged in threesomes.
A spokesperson for the Church of Scientology told MailOnline at the time: ‘There was no project, secret or otherwise, ever conducted by the Church to find a bride, via audition or otherwise, for any member.’
2006: Katie Holmes ‘stood in a hole’ for wedding photo
Standing at a willowy 5’9″, Katie Holmes is a couple of inches taller than Tom Cruise, which led to speculation she may be ‘standing in a trench’ in this photo (pictured: Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes pictured during the 2006 wedding in Italy)
Tom Cruise’s height has been well documented, with the action star said to stand at around 5’7″.
By contrast, his willowy ex-wife Katie Holmes is said to be around 5’9″, which left some perplexed at how the pair appeared to be almost the same height in one famous wedding photo, with Tom perhaps looking a touch taller than his bride.
The couple, who were together for around seven years, made their first public appearance together in April 2005 in Rome, after which they were quickly dubbed ‘TomKat’ by the press.
They tied the knot in 2006 and snaps from the event show Katie, who wore an off-the-shoulder Giorgio Armani ivory gown with a silk Valenciennes lace train and Swarovski embroidered crystals, leaning her cheek on her groom’s cheek.
This prompted some speculation that the former Dawson’s Creek actor may have been bending her knees beneath her lavish wedding gown.
However, others speculated that Katie was standing in some kind of hole or trench, which was covered by the arrangement of her skirt, thus taking a few inches off her stature.
2006: ‘Forcing’ silent birth on former wife Katie
Tom Cruise’s devotion to his controversial religion Scientology is well-known, and has been cited as the reason behind some of his more unusual behaviours.
One of the more contentious stories about the actor is that he made then-partner Katie endure a ‘silent birth’ when giving birth to their daughter Suri in 2006.
Followers of Scientology are said to believe that babies can be traumatised by hearing their mother’s screams or groans while they are being born.
In addition, according to reports, birthing mothers are expected to refuse painkilling drugs and can expect few words of comfort as those present at the birth are also expected to be quiet, even medical staff.
However, the Eyes Wide Shut actor denied that Katie would have to forgo pain relief during labour.
He told US chat show host Diane Sawyer: ‘Whatever the woman wants. I’m not gonna tell Kate …
‘You know, if she needs an epidural, she’s gonna get her epidural…if she needs medicine, she needs medicine.’
2022: Rumoured rift with daughter Suri
It is believed that Tom Cruise has not seen his daughter Suri, who he shares with ex-wife Katie Holmes, since around 2013 (pictured: Tom Cruise with daughter Suri and son Connor at an event in New York in 2012)
Among the controversies in Tom’s life, it is said that the Hollywood heavyweight has no relationship with the daughter he shares with ex-wife Katie.
Their daughter Suri was born in April 2006, seven months before the couple tied the knot in a Scientologist ceremony in Bracciano, Italy.
Katie filed for divorce in June 2012 with Tom later acknowledging that Katie’s desire to protect their daughter Suri from Scientology was a factor in their divorce.
Her decision to quit the religion, as well as the marriage, caused a major rift between the former spouses, which has seen Tom and Suri’s relationship become increasingly distant over the years.
It is believed that he hasn’t seen the 17-year-old since 2013.
However, it has been reported that he will pay her college tuition costs, per his ultra-secret divorce agreement with his actress ex.
According to their divorce documents, Tom agreed to pay Katie $400,000 a year until Suri turned 18 years old.
The documents also state that Tom agreed to pay all of Suri’s expenses, including ‘medical, dental, insurance, education, college and other extracurricular costs.’
Tom disagreed that his religion caused him to be estranged from Suri, and in 2013, he sued In Touch magazine for $50 million when the outlet reported that he ‘abandoned’ his daughter.
The case was settled, but terms of the settlement were not revealed, other than reports saying that each side would bear its own legal costs.
