Parents

Katie Holmes wants to ‘protect’ daughter Suri after paparazzi-filled childhood

Katie Holmes said she’s protective of her teenage daughter, Suri, who grew up with paparazzi watching her every move.

“What has been really important for me with my daughter, because she was so visible at a young age, is I really like to protect her,” the “Dawson’s Creek” alum said in Glamour’s cover story, published Wednesday.

Holmes, who rarely speaks about her 16-year-old daughter in interviews, added that she is “grateful” to be Suri’s mother.

“She’s an incredible person,” Holmes, 44, said.

Katie Holmes feels protective over her daughter, Suri, following her very public childhood, the actress told Glamour magazine. Photographer: Christine Hahn
“She’s an incredible person,” Holmes said of the teenager. Photographer: Christine Hahn
Suri, now 16, grew up in the spotlight thanks to her famous parents. Getty Images

The public’s obsession with Suri blossomed from her parents’ — Holmes and Tom Cruise — unconventional relationship.

The desire to know more about the now-teen skyrocketed when the actor and actress’ marriage fell apart in 2011.

Cruise, 60, began to distance himself from his daughter following the couple’s divorce, and their relationship still hasn’t recovered to this day.

The “Dawson’s Creek” star shares Suri with ex-husband Tom Cruise. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images
The “Top Gun” actor has “no part” in Suri’s life. Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Scientology played a role in the downfall of Cruise’s relationship with his daughter. Getty Images

A source exclusively told Page Six in March that the “Mission: Impossible” star has not seen his daughter in a very long time and is not a part of her life.

During a deposition for his 2012 defamation lawsuit against Bauer Media — which was later settled — the “Top Gun” actor admitted that his relationship with the Church of Scientology had played a large role in why he was distanced from his child’s life.

When Tom was asked whether Holmes had ended their relationship “in part to protect Suri from Scientology,” he responded at the time, “That was one of the assertions, yes.”

Suri has grown up in NYC with Holmes. AbacaPress / SplashNews.com
While Holmes tries to shield Suri from the spotlight, the actor and director has included works from her daughter in recent films “Rare Objects” and “Alone Together.” Felipe Ramales / SplashNews.com

Transcripts later revealed that the actor had not seen his daughter for three months after he and Holmes split up.


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The mother of one — who is reportedly back on the market after calling it quits with Bobby Wooten III in December 2022 — also shared in the new interview that she “always” asks Suri to contribute something to her films, noting that the teenager’s cover of The Marcel’s “Blue Moon” was used in the opening credits of Holmes’ 2022 film “Alone Together.”

Suri also sings in Holmes’ upcoming directorial debut “Rare Objects,” an adaptation of Kathleen Tessaro’s novel of the same name.

“It was very meaningful to me to have her [on set], because she’s my heart,” Holmes said of the teen. Photographer: Christine Hahn
The “Batman Begins” actress wants her movie sets to be safe, beautiful, creative spaces.” Photographer: Christine Hahn

The film, which follows a young woman who seeks to reclaim her life in New York City following a traumatic past, included a sexual assault scene which the new director described as a “difficult one to shoot.”

“To me, unfortunately, [sexual assault] is an understood secret amongst women, so we don’t have to share too much to know what we’re talking about,” Holmes said in the interview, adding that “everybody was pretty shaken up” after filming the scene.

“Rare Objects” is out April 14.