and Nicole Kidman have been divorced for more than two decades, but the actor still has respect for his ex-wife’s talents.

Cruise, 62, who was seen strolling in London with girlfriend Ana de Armas before she returned solo to the U.S. on Saturday, is in the city to receive a distinguished fellowship from the British Film Institute.

In a leadup to the award, which will be celebrated on Monday, the Oscar nominee spoke to the organization’s Sight and Sound magazine.

When looking back at his then controversial film Eyes Wide Shut, directed by the late Stanley Kubrick, Cruise admitted he suggested his then-wife for the role of his onscreen spouse.

‘It was a great experience. I was very excited to do it. I knew Stanley’s movies very well and I was introduced to him through Sydney Pollack. So Stanley called Sydney ’cause he wanted me to make a movie. He sent me a fax,’ he explained.

‘I flew out to his house and I landed in his backyard. I read the script the day before and we spent the day talking about it. I knew all of his films. I spoke to Scorsese about him and Sydney Pollack… so I knew what he did and how he worked.

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman have been divorced for more than two decades, but the actor still has respect for his ex-wife’s talents

His current flame, Ana De Armas, 37, was spotted arriving in the U.S. on Saturday, looking happy and healthy with a huge smile, despite coming without the movie star by her side

‘Then it was basically he and I getting to know each other. And when we were doing that, I suggested Nicole play the role [of Alice]. Because obviously she’s a great actress.’

Cruise said the story of a successful doctor who explores the world of clandestine sexual encounters after his wife reveals her fantasies to him was a joint effort with the director.

‘It was a very unique experience – not a large crew. We arrived in the summer and basically we just started testing… the script was just an idea,’ he admitted. ‘We [were] constantly rewriting the scenes and shooting the scenes and then reshooting the scenes to really find the tone of the film.’

The erotic thriller received a lukewarm reception from critics and audiences, but more than made up for its $60 million budget, which included Cruise’s $20m fee and Kidman’s reported $6.5 million salary.

Kidman, 57, revealed in a 2023 essay for The Hollywood Reporter that ‘Stanley had to coax me into some of the sexuality in the film in the beginning, but we shot things that were a lot more extreme that didn’t end up in the movie.’

‘I did feel safe – I never felt it was exploitive (sic) or unintelligent. He was very different with women than he was with men. He has daughters, so he was very paternal with me.’

Kubrick died in March 1999 at age 70, just months before the film’s release.

Cruise reportedly shocked Kidman, when he filed for divorce in February 2001, citing ‘irreconcilable differences.’

In an interview with the British Film Institute’s Sight and Sound, the actor, 52, revealed he suggested Kidman, 57, be cast as Alice in Eyes Wide Shut, ‘Because obviously she’s a great actress’

Cruise and Kidman, 57, split in 2001, after the actor filed reportedly surprised Kidman by filing in February of that year, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’; pictured in Los Angeles in July 1999

Cruise will receive a distinguished fellowship from the British Film Institute on Monday;  Pictured in Tokyo on May 7

Cruise’s latest film Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning will screen at the Cannes film festival on Wednesday

Former Church of Scientology member Mike Rinder alleged in his book A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology, that Cruise’s membership and Kidman’s refusal to join the church was a factor in the split.

There have also been reports that the Top Gun: Maverick star is estranged from his daughter Suri, 19, who now goes by Suri Noelle, because she is not a Scientologist and the religion reportedly members stay away from loved ones who do not share in their beliefs.

His current flame, Ana De Armas, 37, is reportedly Catholic, like Kidman, so it is unclear how successful the relationship will be in the long term.

She was spotted arriving in the U.S. on Saturday, looking happy and healthy with a huge smile, despite coming without the movie star by her side.

After he receives his award on Monday, Cruise will dash off to Cannes where his latest film Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning will screen at the film festival on Wednesday.