Tom Cruise Turns 50 Amid Katie Holmes Divorce Drama

Tom Cruise turns 50 on Tuesday without Katie Holmes by his side to celebrate the milestone.

Holmes allegedly blindsided the actor last week when she filed for divorce in New York City, citing irreconcilable differences and seeking full custody of their 6-year-old daughter, Suri.

Cruise was in Iceland filming the sci-fi thriller Oblivion while Holmes, according to reports, rented an NYC apartment and recruited her Ohio-based attorney father to help devise her exit strategy from the five-year marriage.

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Cruise and Holmes, meanwhile, are confronting a custody battle over Suri that could have consequences on how much influence Cruise’s controversial religion, Scientology, will have on the little girl as she grows up.

It’s been reported that Holmes’ decision to file in New York was because there is a greater likelihood of a court granting sole custody; meanwhile, Cruise is expected to bring the dispute to California, where he will seek joint custody of the Suri.

According to the Los Angeles Times, a source close to the case said Scientology was a key issue in the breakup in regard to raising Suri.

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But rather than undergo court faceoff, a Cruise-Holmes settlement is the hope and it is likely the two will settle on a custody arrangement in which both parents have rights, the Times said.

At the moment, Holmes’ East Coast soon-to-be bachelorette pad is swarmed by media hoping to get comment from the 33-year-old Dawson’s Creek actress. She has retained New Jersey-based lawyer Jonathan Wolfe, who told THR in a statement: “Katie’s primary concern remains, as it always has been, her daughter’s best interest. This is a personal and private matter for Katie and her family.”