Tom Cruise might keep his dating life private now but there was a time when it was pretty much all anyone talked about.
In the mid 2000s, a rumor surfaced that top-ranking figures in Scientology— the controversial Church that Cruise is a member of — were auditioning women to be the Top Gun star’s next girlfriend and future wife. In 2012, Vanity Fair spoke to several sources, including former members, who confirmed the rumors. The following year, a Norwegian woman came forward to claim that she was one of the women auditioned. In 2018, another former member named Valerie Haney alleged that she oversaw a church program that auditioned women to be Cruise’s girlfriend, saying it “absolutely happened.”
According to Vanity Fair, Scientology leaders were concerned that Cruise could be led away from his faith by a girlfriend. The actor’s first wife, Nicole Kidman, famously left the Church during their marriage before they eventually split in 2001. Some reports claim that Kidman briefly succeeded in getting her then-husband out of Scientology.
The details of the alleged auditions remain hazy, especially because the Church of Scientology denies the claims but there were allegedly some famous faces among the women picked by Scientology.
Penélope Cruz
Though Cruise and Cruz’s relationship predates the official auditions Vanity Fair claims happened, Scientology’s disapproval was allegedly one of the reasons the relationship between the pair ended.
The pair dated from 2001 to 2004 and according to a 2013 report by Vanity Fair split because Cruz “ran afoul of [church leader David Miscavige]” because she was unwilling to “forsake her Buddhist beliefs.”
It has also been reported that Cruise’s close relationship with another ex was part of the reason for the split.
Nazanin Boniadi
Iranian-born actress and activist Nazanin Boniadi was reportedly Scientology’s first pick before they later landed on another female actress (no prizes for guessing who) but the union did not last.
According to Vanity Fair, the then-23-year-old was a member of the Church and went through an extensive auditing process that allegedly even led to her breaking up with her boyfriend.
Between November and December 2004, Boniadi and Cruise, who was 42 at the time, were allegedly inseparable, causing concern among her friends and family.
However, the pair struggled to get their relationship off the ground and Boniadi allegedly failed to prove herself to be an adequate match for Cruise in the eyes of Scientology leaders. Thus, the relationship ended and, according to Vanity Fair, Cruise had another key figure in the Church break up with Boniadi on his behalf.
Scarlett Johansson
In Vanity Fair’s bombshell 2012 aritcle about the auditions, Johansson was named as one of the stars Scientology attempted to entice to Cruise.
However, the actress feverishly denied the claim in 2018. “The very idea of any person auditioning to be in a relationship is so demeaning,” Johansson said in a statement, per People. “I refuse for anyone to spread the idea that I lack the integrity to choose my own relationships.”
Jennifer Garner
In 2008, a biographer alleged that Jennifer Garner was courted by Cruise, per the Daily Mail. Cruise would allegedly call Garner and leave obscure voicemails for her.
However, based on the number of times Garner has been photographed going to church, we’re guessing her Methodist faith might be part of the reason this relationship never got off the ground!
Sofía Vergara
Sofía Vergara was also name dropped as one of the women up for the role of Mrs. Cruise. The duo reportedly briefly dated at the beginning of 2005 but Vergara was ruled out as a potential match when she refused to renounce her Catholic faith.
Katie Holmes
As the rumor goes, Holmes “won” the auditioning process and began dating Cruise in 2005 before he very publicly declared his love for the Dawson’s Creek actress while jumping on Oprah’s couch.
Holmes revealed in W Magazine that year that she was converting to Scientology, saying, “I just started auditing and I’m taking some courses and I really like it. I feel like it’s really helping.”
The pair welcomed their daughter, Suri, and married in 2006 but Holmes shocked the world when she abruptly filed for divorce from Cruise in 2012. It has been heavily reported that Holmes did so to get herself and her daughter out of Scientology.
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