Suri Cruise celebrated her milestone birthday on Thursday, and stayed largely out of the spotlight — which is how the child of two massive celebrities has largely lived most of her life after being thrust into the spotlight as an infant.
Born April 18, 2006, Suri is the daughter of Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise. With two mega-famous parents, who wound up going through a very public and wildly scrutinized divorce, Suri’s early life was tabloid fodder from her earliest days.
However, Suri’s mom worked hard to give her a normal childhood away from the public eye as much as possible. Katie kept her private life private as the pair navigated the challenges of fame together, following Katie’s split from Tom in 2012.
Now, in celebration of Suri’s 18th birthday, ET is looking back at her bond with her famous mom, and some of the sweet, candid things Katie has said about her little girl over the years.
Katie on Trying to Give Suri a Normal Childhood
Sitting down for a chat on the Today show in August 2014, Katie was asked about whether or not it is actually possible to give Suri an ordinary upbringing, removed from the pressures of the public eye.
“I think, of course, you try your best. I try very hard because I am very grateful for my upbringing and my parents and siblings. I try to do what they did for me for my little one,” Katie shared. “The most important thing for me is letting her know how proud I am and that her accomplishments mean everything. Whatever I do is whatever. It’s really just about her.”
How Suri Helped Katie With Her Directorial Debut
The actress stepped behind the camera for the first time in 2016 for her directorial debut, All We Had, and she opened up to ET about how her daughter influenced the film.
“The mother-daughter theme [of] that unending love that you have for your mother and for your child is universal,” said Katie, who also starred in the drama. According to Katie, Suri helped her understand the dynamic between her character, Rita, and her on-screen daughter, Ruthie — which is why Katie honored her then-10-year-old daughter with a “special thanks” at the end of the film.
“She gets a special thanks for everything, [for] every job I do, because she makes every day great and awesome and better,” the proud mom marveled. “I know myself better because of her, so she’ll always get a special thanks.”
Suri’s ‘Stable’ Childhood Is the Most Important Thing
In an interview with Town & Country‘s April issue in 2017, Katie said she takes her role as a mother very seriously.
“My child is the most important person to me, and her upbringing is paramount to my work right now,” she shared. “It’s very important that I’m present and she has a stable, innocent childhood… “I feel so blessed to do what I do, but there’s nothing in the world better than watching your child succeed.”
The Dawson’s Creek actress noted that Suri was growing up fast, sharing, “Every day, kids get a little further away from you. That’s a positive thing. They should be becoming more independent, but it’s heartbreaking. You want them to stay with you forever, but they’re these amazing beings, and you have to do everything you can to give them what they need — and then they’re going to go. And that’s going to be very, very sad for me.”
The Mother-Daughter Duo Took on the World Together
In an interview with Elle U.K. in November 2019, Katie talked about becoming a mother at 27, and how she’s grown in sync with her little girl.
“I was happy to become a mom in my 20s,” she said. “It’s been nice that our ages fit… how do I put this? Every age that my child has been and my age at that time has been a good match. We kind of grew up together.”
When asked about whether she feels fear for the challenges her child will face as she grows older, Katie said, “Doesn’t every parent? Yes, of course I’m worried. There is so much bad news and hate and things that don’t make sense… The atmosphere around the world is… terrifying.”
Katie on Quarantine Life With Suri
Not long after her comments about the state of the world and her fears for her daughter, the coronavirus pandemic struck, sending everyone into quarantine and self-isolation — including Katie and Suri.
Speaking with ET in July 2020, about her role in The Secret: Dare to Dream, Katie admitted, “This lockdown has had a lot of silver linings” — including getting to spend more time with her daughter. “This year has also been a reminder that the simple things are really beautiful… and those are the gifts of life.”
She celebrated Suri’s birthday in lockdown in April 2020, and told ET that, while she couldn’t go all-out with the festivities, she said, “I think when you have less, you’re more creative.”
Katie on Watching ‘Dawson’s Creek’ With Her Daughter
In an interview with Variety in March 2023, Katie revealed that she and her then-16-year-old daughter watched her teen drama series Dawson’s Creek while stuck together in lockdown.
“She has seen Dawson’s Creek, and I think it’s probably weird since she’s a teenager. I’m not like, ‘You need to watch Mommy’s work.’ But during the pandemic, we had a good laugh about it,” Katie told the publication. “It’s wild to have a daughter who’s almost the same age as I was when I began all this.”
Katie was just 19 when she began her role as Joey Potter on the show, which would go on to run for six seasons before airing its series finale in 2003.
Katie Has So Much Love for Her Little Girl
Katie sat down with Haute Living New York in April 2023 for a cover story about her life and career — as an actress, a director, and a mom — and explained that, while she had a busy schedule filled with passion projects and long-term goals, there was one thing that stood out above all else in her life — her daughter.
“She’s the greatest; my heart is her,” Katie said of Suri. “She’s definitely my favorite thing about life.”
That same month, Katie spoke with Glamour magazine about Suri, and protecting her from pressure and negativity.
“What has been really important for me with my daughter, because she was so visible at a young age, is I really like to protect her,” Katie said. “I’m very grateful to be a parent, to be her parent. She’s an incredible person.”
Katie on Getting to Work With Her Daughter on Film Projects
When it comes to working with her daughter — who can be heard singing on the soundtrack of two of Katie’s directorial efforts — the proud mom said she was happy to create the opportunity.
“I hope she always does something on my films. I always ask her,” Katie told Glamour. “But both of those experiences came out of the same sense of what I love about our industry, which is, you have these projects and you become a family with people. And it’s this safe, beautiful, creative space.
“So it comes out of love for me to include someone who I love dearly,” she added. “That’s how I like to work. I like to have that kind of feeling. It was very meaningful to me to have her there, because she’s my heart.”
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