Holmes, 33, filed for divorce in New York yesterday citing "irreconcilable differences", announcing the split via a statement to People magazine.
Cruise, 49, said he was “deeply saddened” by the news. The couple have a six-year-old daughter, Suri.
Holmes is asking for sole legal custody of Suri, according to the US website TMZ, setting up the couple for a high profile legal battle if Cruise chooses to contest her claim.
The pair signed a prenuptial agreement before their wedding in November 2006, which guarantees Holmes a yearly sum. However, legal experts said the actor could be prepared to give up a larger slice of his £160 million fortune in return for Miss Holmes remaining silent about the details of their marriage.
Such a deal would echo that of Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren in 2010. While they had a prenuptial agreement giving Miss Nordegren an annual sum, Woods is believed to have given her a settlement of close to £100 million in order to avoid an “ugly” public dispute.
Cruise remains one of the world’s most bankable actors. The star of Top Gun and the Mission: Impossible franchise earned an estimated £50 million last year alone and runs his own Hollywood production company.
Michael Kelly, a leading Californian divorce lawyer who specialises in pre-nuptial agreements, said: “One thing you can rely on is that Tom Cruise will have an airtight pre-nup. This is a man who is in control of everything and the pre-nup will be pretty restrictive.
“He could choose to give Katie a bigger settlement, as Tiger Woods did with his wife, but that will be his choice. There is also the prospect of a custody dispute, which he will want to avoid.”
This will be the third divorce for Cruise. He was married to Mimi Rogers, the actress, from 1987-1990 and to Nicole Kidman from 1990-2001, with whom he adopted two children.
His relationship with Holmes, then an up-and-coming actress best known for her role in teen drama Dawson’s Creek, began in April 2005.
Two months later, Cruise used a press conference in Paris to announce that he had proposed under the Eiffel Tower.
The actor famously jumped up and down on Oprah Winfrey’s couch to demonstrate his love for Holmes. At the time, there were rumours - strenuously denied by the couple - that Cruise had “auditioned” a number of actresses to become his date.
The wedding took place in November 2006, a lavish affair in an Italian castle with guests including the Beckhams and Giorgio Armani. The official photograph showed the couple to be matched in height, despite Miss Holmes standing several inches taller than her husband in real life.
Cruise is a Scientologist and in the run-up to the wedding a “Free Katie” campaign was started by opponents of the religion urging her not to marry him, with slogans including “Run, Katie, Run!”
The couple were last photographed together in February and Miss Holmes was absent from the red carpet during Cruise’s recent promotional tour for Rock of Ages.
Holmes’s lawyer, Jonathan Wolfe, said: “This is a personal and private matter for Katie and her family. Katie’s primary concern remains, as it always has been, her daughter’s best interest.”
A spokesman for Cruise said last night: “Kate has filed for divorce. Tom is deeply saddened and is concentrating on his three children.” The actor is currently in Iceland shooting a new sci-fi film, Oblivion.
[Telegraph]
Michael Kelly, a leading Californian divorce lawyer who specialises in pre-nuptial agreements, said: “One thing you can rely on is that Tom Cruise will have an airtight pre-nup. This is a man who is in control of everything and the pre-nup will be pretty restrictive.
“He could choose to give Katie a bigger settlement, as Tiger Woods did with his wife, but that will be his choice. There is also the prospect of a custody dispute, which he will want to avoid.”
This will be the third divorce for Cruise. He was married to Mimi Rogers, the actress, from 1987-1990 and to Nicole Kidman from 1990-2001, with whom he adopted two children.
His relationship with Holmes, then an up-and-coming actress best known for her role in teen drama Dawson’s Creek, began in April 2005.
Two months later, Cruise used a press conference in Paris to announce that he had proposed under the Eiffel Tower.
The actor famously jumped up and down on Oprah Winfrey’s couch to demonstrate his love for Holmes. At the time, there were rumours - strenuously denied by the couple - that Cruise had “auditioned” a number of actresses to become his date.
The wedding took place in November 2006, a lavish affair in an Italian castle with guests including the Beckhams and Giorgio Armani. The official photograph showed the couple to be matched in height, despite Miss Holmes standing several inches taller than her husband in real life.
Cruise is a Scientologist and in the run-up to the wedding a “Free Katie” campaign was started by opponents of the religion urging her not to marry him, with slogans including “Run, Katie, Run!”
The couple were last photographed together in February and Miss Holmes was absent from the red carpet during Cruise’s recent promotional tour for Rock of Ages.
Holmes’s lawyer, Jonathan Wolfe, said: “This is a personal and private matter for Katie and her family. Katie’s primary concern remains, as it always has been, her daughter’s best interest.”
A spokesman for Cruise said last night: “Kate has filed for divorce. Tom is deeply saddened and is concentrating on his three children.” The actor is currently in Iceland shooting a new sci-fi film, Oblivion.
[Telegraph]
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