Tom Cruise is said to be eyeing up Bond actress Ana de Armas for a role in his reboot of Days of Thunder, but if rumours of a romance between the pair are to be believed she could find herself also being assessed for the part of the fourth Mrs Cruise. 

A rumour has long circulated in Hollywood that leaders in the Church of Scientology auditioned potential brides for Cruise after his split from Nicole Kidman – something his lawyer has denied.

But if the star is indeed considering Ana for a more long-term role in his life, the Cuban actress, 36, has a lot to consider, and not just because of the 26-year age gap between the pair. 

The Mission Impossible star has been married three times – to Mimi Rogers, Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes and it’s fair to say he comes with a lot of baggage. 

Nicole has described how she was left in ‘utter shock’ when their split came out of the blue, and she is believed to be estranged from the two children they adopted together who follow their father’s Scientology faith. 

Meanwhile, Katie Holmes was reportedly made to stand in a trench for her wedding photos because of their height difference and gave birth to their daughter Suri – who Tom no longer sees – in silence. 

On Sunday, Tom and Ana were seen arriving at London Heliport after getting out of Tom’s helicopter – after returning from Madrid, Spain.

And that wasn’t the first time the 62-year-old action star and the 36-year-old actress have been seen out and about. On Valentine’s Day they were spotted grabbing dinner in Soho, London, sparking rumours that the two were dating.

At the time, a source told DailyMail.com that they are not romantically involved. The insider insisted that the dates were strictly business as the actor is eyeing up Ana for future projects.

‘Everything with Tom and Ana is innocent. They are hanging out to talk about future movies that they could do together,’ the insider said.

‘One of those ideas is the Days of Thunder sequel that Tom wants to get off the ground. It is currently in its infancy. He’s talking [to Paramount] about and It’s going to be what comes together first in terms of a script. It depends on the idea and, ultimately, the script.’

However, the latest sighting of the two has fuelled the dating rumours. If they were to start a relationship, it would be the latest in Tom Cruise’s eventful dating history.

Here FEMAIL reveals the very mixed personal life of the Mission Impossible actor…

He hastily divorces first wife Mimi Rogers in 1989 – with some wondering whether Scientology is behind split

The first of Tom Cruise’s three wives was Mimi Rodgers, with whom he tied the knot in 1987. 

Although Mimi has since left the Church of Scientology, it’s believed that she was one of Tom’s first links to the organisation – which he is closely associated with.

Unfortunately, the marriage did not last, and the couple split at the end of 1989.

According to reports, Tom started filming the movie Days of Thunder in December of that year, alongside Nicole Kidman, who would become his second wife.

According to a 2016 interview Nicole did with People magazine, the pair fell in love while making the movie.

It has been claimed by some that senior Scientologists were drafted in to expedite the divorce, paving the way for Tom’s relationship with Nicole.

Mimi’s father, once a prominent member of the church had left in the early 80s, reportedly creating some hostility from the organisation towards Mimi. 

Former Scientology church executive Mike Rinder, co-host of the series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath and author of A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology, made these claims in his book.

He claimed that Scientologists talked Mimi into the divorce, paving the way for the new marriage, adding that this was ‘highly unusual and would never have happened with a normal Scientologist’.

The Church of Scientology strongly denied these claims in a statement to Page Six, describing them as ‘utterly ludicrous’.

2011: Blind-sided his second wife Nicole Kidman with divorce

After meeting on the the set of Days of Thunder, Tome Cruise wed Nicole Kidman in 1990 – making her his second wife. She was 23-years-old.

Nicole became a mother at 25 when then couple adopted daughter Isabella Jane, followed three years later by son Connor.

Their split in 2001 came as a shock to many – including Nicole – after they had enjoyed their status as one of Hollywood’s most celebrated pairings for more than a decade.

The actress was reportedly left in a state of ‘utter shock’ when Tom walked out on the relationship, filing for divorce that same year, citing ‘irreconcilable differences.’

Speaking about the split a year later, Nicole said: ‘I thought our life together was perfect.

‘It took me a very long time to heal. It was a shock to my system.

‘We were in a bubble, just the two of us. We became very dependent on one another. I was reeling with Tom.

‘I would have gone to the ends of the earth for him…. I was totally smitten – I fell madly, passionately in love.’

While a specific reason for the split has never been confirmed, according to reports, one reason for Tom leaving Nicole was her refusal to join the Church of Scientology.

Isabella and Connor are both devoted members of The Church of Scientology, like their father, and it is thought they may not be in touch with their mother.

2001: Tom reportedly ‘auditions’ actresses to become his girlfriend

Among the more unusual rumours surrounding Tom is that he ‘auditioned’ actresses after he divorced Nicole and was seeking a girlfriend.

According to claims made by Lawrence Wright in his controversial book Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood and the Prison Belief, Scientology elders were invited by Tom to hold screen tests to find his new wife. 

This claim has been denied by the church of Scientology’s lawyers. 

But according to the book, a number of actors were ‘auditioned’, including Jessica Alba, Scarlett Johansson, and Lindsay Lohan. 

Speaking in 2015, actor Anette Iren Johansen said she’d been among those to ‘audition’ for the wifely role, and claimed she’d been quizzed on her sexual history.

According to Anette, a church elder asked if she had ever had sex with a woman, or engaged in threesomes. 

He would eventually end up marrying Katie Holmes, though some reports say the Dawson’s Creek star may not have been his first choice of partner.

A spokesperson for the Church of Scientology told MailOnline at the time: ‘There was no project, secret or otherwise, ever conducted by the Church to find a bride, via audition or otherwise, for any member.’

2006: Katie Holmes ‘stood in a hole’ to look shorter in wedding photos

Tom Cruise tied the knot with third wife Katie Holmes in 2006 – a year after making their first public appearance together in April 2005 in Rome, after which they were quickly dubbed ‘TomKat’ by the press.

One of the photos released from their Italian wedding shows Katie, who wore an off-the-shoulder Giorgio Armani ivory gown with a silk Valenciennes lace train and Swarovski embroidered crystals, leaning her cheek on her groom’s cheek.

In the photo, the couple appear to be the same height, with Tome perhaps looking a touch taller – leaving some perplexed as Tom stands at 5’7″ while Katie is a willowy 5’9″.

 This prompted some speculation that the former Dawson’s Creek actor may have been bending her knees beneath her lavish wedding gown.

However, others speculated that Katie was standing in some kind of hole or trench, which was covered by the arrangement of her skirt, thus taking a few inches off her stature.

2006: Katie is ‘forced’ to have a ‘silent birth’ 

Among the more contentious stories around Tom Cruise is that he made then-partner Katie endure a ‘silent birth’ when giving birth to their daughter Suri in 2006.

This is because followers of Scientology (with Tom a devout member of the organisation) are said to believe that babies can be traumatised by hearing their mother’s screams or groans while they are being born.

Reports also claim that those present at the birth – including medical staff – are also expected to be silent, meaning birthing mothers can expect few words of comfort.

While giving birth, it’s been claimed that women are also expected to refuse painkilling drugs.

However, during an interview US chat show host Diane Sawyer, Tom denied that Katie would have to forgo pain relief during labour, saying: ‘Whatever the woman wants. I’m not gonna tell Kate …

‘You know, if she needs an epidural, she’s gonna get her epidural…if she needs medicine, she needs medicine.’

2022: Reportedly estranged from daughter Suri

One of the controversial stories Tom is that he is estranged from his daughter Suri, whose mother is his ex-wife Katie Holmes. 

The couple, who tied the knot in a Scientologist ceremony in Bracciano, Italy, welcomed Suri, now 18, seven months earlier, in April 2006.

In June 2012, Katie filed for divorce. Tom later acknowledged that a factor in theirsplit was Katie’s desire to protect their daughter Suri from Scientology.

Katie quitting both the marriage and Scientology caused a major rift with Tom, which reportedly led to his relationship with Suri to become increasingly distant over the years.

It is believed that he hasn’t seen the 17-year-old since 2013, with reports claiming he missed her graduation in at the end of 2024.

However, according to reports, Tom will pay Suri’s college tuition costs, per his ultra-secret divorce agreement with his actress ex.  

In addition, according to their divorce documents, Tom agreed to pay Katie $400,000 a year until Suri turned 18 years old, paying all of Suri’s expenses, including ‘medical, dental, insurance, education, college and other extracurricular costs.’

Tom disagreed that his religion caused him to be estranged from Suri, and in 2013, he sued In Touch magazine for $50 million when the outlet reported that he ‘abandoned’ his daughter.

The case was settled, but terms of the settlement were not revealed, other than reports saying that each side would bear its own legal costs.