Tom's lapdance shame

Acting or not, friends wonder if Tom and Katie’s marriage breakdown had anything to do with a very sexy scandal.

It’s a confrontation no wife should ever be forced to endure, and Katie Holmes couldn’t help but tearfully ask Tom Cruise, “How am I supposed to feel seeing a 20-something blonde stripping and giving you a lap dance?” It’s just the latest showdown in what may have contributed to the marriage breakdown of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.

Katie filed for divorce against Cruise over the weekend seeking sole-custody of the pair’s six-year-old daughter Suri. The 33-year-old star has become increasingly isolated, with Tom away in New Orleans filming his new sci-fi thriller Oblivion for much of the year and her own career more or less nonexistent. So when Tom, 49, confessed that Julianne Hough, 23, had given him a lap dance, he surely can’t have been surprised that it proved to be the final straw for his soon-to-be ex-wife.

“She couldn’t believe what she was hearing,” a friend of Katie’s tells Woman’s Day. “She felt sick. When Tom took the part in Rock Of Ages he swore there wouldn’t be loads of sex scenes.” But unfortunately for Katie, it was a promise Tom couldn’t keep when it came time to front up for the cameras in the musical, which portrays the hedonistic 1980s music scene. “When Julianne was stripping for him and giving him a lap dance, he must have known Katie would be upset,” continues the friend. “I don’t understand why he did it.”

In a bid to earn Katie’s forgiveness Tom pulled out all the stops to get the scene cut from the final product. When asked about the raunchy scene, producer Adam Shankman said, “I cut it because [Tom and Julianne] were too good at it. It was incredibly sexy.” While Katie was pacified by the last-minute change, Julianne — who’s being lauded as Hollywood’s next big thing – is said to be furious that what could have been a career-launching role has been watered down.