Connor and Bella Cruise: Our Scientology secret

Growing up in a life marred by divorce and controversy, Nicole and Tom’s kids have forged a special friendship.

When they were first adopted, it seemed Isabella and Connor Cruise had hit the jackpot. As the beloved new children of movie superstars Tom Cruise and then-wife Nicole Kidman, they were destined to enjoy lives of luxury in a happy, stable home.

No-one could have predicted the reality of their lives – rocked by their parents’ divorce in 2001, thrown into the Scientology religion, cutting contact with Nicole and witnessing Tom’s doomed marriage to Katie Holmes. Bella and Connor are still afforded treats other teens could only dream of, but there’s no doubt they’ve endured their fair share of turmoil.

As Connor turned 18 last week, he and his 20-year-old sister reflected on an upbringing that has included only one constant – each other. Now, as the pair reach adulthood and slowly begin to go their separate ways, a source close to Bella tells Woman’s Day they’ve vowed to be there for one another always. Bella was eight and Connor six when Tom and Nicole split, and their father retained primary custody as part of a top-secret settlement.

In the 12 years since, the children have had limited contact with Nicole, 45. Instead, Tom, 50, installed his own mum and sisters – all devout Scientologists – to act as mother figures and home-schoolers. Then, in 2005, when Bella was 12 and Connor was 10, they watched Tom get caught up in a whirlwind romance with Katie Holmes, proposing to the younger actress and moving her into the palatial family estate. “Suddenly Tom was focusing all of his attention on Katie,” a friend of Bella’s tells Woman’s Day.