Brooke Shields delves into her feud with Tom Cruise and the 2005 op-ed she penned, criticizing him for his public criticism of her use of antidepressants for postpartum depression.
In her new memoir, “Brooke Shields is Not Allowed to Get Old: Thoughts on Aging as a Woman,” Shields reflects on her decision to respond to Cruise’s comments. She acknowledges that if he had attacked her before she became a mother, she might have remained silent and ignored his ridiculous rant. She might have even been content to let him hijack her experience to advance his own agenda.
Cruise’s comments came after the release of Shields’ earlier memoir, “Down Came the Rain,” where she candidly shared her experience with postpartum depression after welcoming daughter Rowan, who is now 21. Shields and her husband, Chris Henchy, also share 18-year-old daughter Grier.
A decade earlier, Shields might have chosen to sit quietly and let herself be attacked. She might have even regretted sharing her story or felt insecure that her career was stalling while a powerful male movie star singled her out. However, life experience had emboldened her by the time she turned 40, allowing her to grow into her “self-confidence.”
Following the release of her memoir, Cruise appeared on the Today show and disparaged her, referring to her use of antidepressants as “dangerous.” Cruise asserted that there was no such thing as a chemical imbalance and that he was the one spreading misinformation. He claimed that Shields lacked understanding of the history of psychiatry.
Shields responded by publishing an op-ed in The New York Times, sparking a heated exchange between the former friends.
“I was defending myself and women who were suffering against irrational and dangerous comments from an unschooled actor who was way out of his depth,” Shields wrote in her new book. She noted that while her op-ed “outraged” Cruise, it also “spurred discussions on the reality and prevalence of postpartum depression.”
Cruise eventually apologized, as confirmed by Shields in her book, though not publicly.
According to Shields, the actor visited her house and they had a conversation. “It wasn’t the world’s best apology, but it was what he was capable of, and I accepted it,” she wrote.
However, she still isn’t on his Christmas coconut cake list. Shields shared that she received the cake for about 10 years, even after the 2005 incident, but was cut from the list and wants to get back on.
