NEWSTom Cruise 'Eventually' Apologized for 'Ridiculous' 2005 Rant About Brooke Shields' Antidepressant Use, Actress Reveals in New Memoir
Tom Cruise put Brooke Shields on blast during a 'Today' show appearance in 2005.
Brooke Shields revisited her infamous 2005 falling out with Tom Cruise in her new memoir.
In her tell-all book Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman, which was released on Tuesday, January 14, the 59-year-old admitted Cruise, 62, "eventually" apologized to her after blasting the actress for using antidepressants to handle her postpartum depression two decades ago.
Brooke Shields revealed in her new memoir that Tom Cruise 'eventually' apologized for his rude remarks.
"It wasn’t the world’s best apology, but it’s what he was capable of, and I accepted it," Shields wrote in her memoir, as she reflected on proudly "sticking up for" herself after Cruise "disparaged" her on live television.
"Had Tom taken a public swing at me before I became a mother, I probably would have stayed quiet. I would have ignored his ridiculous rant," Shields declared regarding Cruise's comments claiming the The Blue Lagoon star was "irresponsible" for taking a prescription medication to help overcome her postpartum depression.
Tom Cruise criticized Brooke Shields for using antidepressants to battle postpartum depression.
At the time, the Top Gun actor insisted Shields' use of antidepressants "didn't cure anything."
Shields continued: "I might have been content to sit back while this very famous man hijacked my experience to advance his own (deluded) agenda. I would have been satisfied that his behavior would speak for itself."
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Brooke Shields' new memoir released on Tuesday, January 14.
"Emboldened by self-confidence" as a new mom, Shields said she refused to "sit … quietly" and "be attacked" by Cruise publicly — prompting her to respond to the Mission: Impossible actor's remarks via a New York Times op-ed that same year.
"A decade earlier — I might have even regretted sharing my story or felt insecure that maybe my career was stalling while a powerful male movie star was singling me out, sure that I’d never stand a chance in that fight," the Pretty Baby actress noted.
By speaking out and "sticking up" for herself against "irrational and dangerous comments from an unschooled actor who was speaking way out of his depth," Shields felt she was also "spurr[ing] discussions on the reality and prevalence of postpartum depression."
While it's unclear exactly where Cruise and Shields' friendship stands, it seems their rocky relationship is now in somewhat of a better place.
Tom Cruise used to send Brooke Shields a coconut bundt cake every year for Christmas.
However, in 2023, Shields told People Cruise stopped sending her a coconut bundt cake from Doan's Bakery for Christmas after "a good 10-year run" — though she later clarified the pause in holiday gifts had nothing to do with their antidepressant-related feud.
The present was initially from Cruise, his ex-wife Katie Holmes, 46, and their daughter, Suri, 18, until the former flames split in 2012.
"It was from them and Suri, so it was the three of them, and then soon it was no Suri and no Katie and just Tom. Then it went from just Tom for a while, but not every holiday. And then the cake stopped," she explained nearly two years ago, joking: "I want to get back on that cake list. It's the best cake. Tom, I need to be back on the cake list."
