Jack
and Jill
The
Kennedys 
The
Son of No One
Tom Cruise: ‘When Katie Holmes walks into the room, I feel better’
Tom Cruise discusses singing in front of Def Leppard while filming “Rock of Ages,” as well as his relationship with wife Katie Holmes, in a new interview in the June issue of Playboy.
“I knew I could hold a note. I sang in a glee club when I was 14 years old and in a high school musical. But I never had a singing lesson,” said Cruise, speaking of signing on to play rock star Stacee Jaxx in the upcoming movie musical “Rock of Ages.”
“It’s like learning a new sport or a skill for a character. I had to find out how to move air through the vocal cords and where to place it in my head, in the chest.”
Cruise said that the role was trial by fire — and that he was asked to perform “Pour Some Sugar on Me” in front of the band that recorded it on his first day of filming.
“I was down in Miami, recording different songs, and [the director] called and said, ‘Def Leppard’s coming by the set.’ I said, ‘Man, that’s cool.’ Then I paused. ‘Wait, I’m rehearsing their song tomorrow.’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah!’ So we started right in the deep end, and that was the first scene I shot in the movie,” remembers Cruise. “All the crew was watching them watching me. The lead singer, Joe Elliott, points at me and goes, ‘[Bleep] you! [Bleep] you!’ Then I saw big smiles on their faces, and I realized I’d gotten their stamp. It was a very cool moment.”
Cruise was of course also asked about his wife, Katie Holmes, in the interview.
“When she walks into the room, I just feel better,” said Cruise. “I don’t know what to say—I’m just happy, and I have been since the moment I met her. What we have is very special.”
Cruise also discussed his behavior early in their relationship, when he infamously jumped on Oprah’s couch and lambasted Brooke Shields for taking anti-depressants.
“That time was interesting. It was that moment when the Internet had really spun out,” said Cruise. “It was a learning experience for all of us, how these things go. All you can do is learn and say, ‘This is the way it’s going to go from now on. Here is the line.’”
As for the rumor mill constantly spinning on himself and Holmes, Cruise said that he has learned to not pay attention.
“There’s a separation between what’s happening versus what people say. This is something I learned growing up, moving and always being the new kid,” said Cruise. “Do you wish they wouldn’t say certain things? Yeah, you wish. Does refuting things help? Not really. There comes a point when you just have to go, You know what? Here’s how I’ve lived my life: I’ve never been late to set. I make films I believe in. I feel privileged to be able to do what I love. You just have to keep going and remember that. The other stuff? I hear it, I read it, I get it. But life is not a matter of trying to prove anything to anybody.”
