Tom Cruise privately expressed remorse over his “ridiculous rant” about Brooke Shields’ use of antidepressants, the actress revealed in her new memoir.
The Golden Globe nominee wrote in “Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman,” published Tuesday, that the actor “eventually” said sorry to her.
“It wasn’t the world’s best apology, but it’s what he was capable of, and I accepted it,” she shared.
Shields, 59, recalled “sticking up for” herself when Cruise, 62, infamously “disparaged” her during a 2005 “Today” show appearance.
At the time, the “Top Gun” star called the “Suddenly Susan” alum “irresponsible” for taking medication while battling postpartum depression, claiming it “didn’t cure anything.”
Shields subsequently wrote a New York Times op-ed clapping back.
“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,” she admitted in her new book.
“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.”
Instead, the “Pretty Baby” star refused to “sit … quietly” and let herself “be attacked” because she was “emboldened by self-confidence.”
Shields wrote, “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 “Endless Love” star believed she was not only “sticking up” for herself against “irrational and dangerous comments from an unschooled actor who was speaking way out of his depth” but also “spurr[ing] discussions on the reality and prevalence of postpartum depression.”
Cruise’s rep has yet to respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
