After separating from Prince Charles in 1992, Diana was back on the market and looking for her Prince Charming. So when she was invited to meet Tom Cruise on the set of his new movie, we’re sure, like the rest of us, she would have found it thrilling. And also like the rest of us, she probably fantasized about going on a date with a huge Hollywood star.
But it was not meant to be—and not just because he was married to Nicole Kidman at the time. No, there was another, very specific reason she didn’t entertain the notion.
Read on to learn exactly what she thought about the potential pairing.
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Were Princess Diana and Tom Cruise friends?
No, but they had met briefly. In 1992, Tom and Nicole, who had been married two years by then, met Diana at the London premiere of their movie Far and Away. A few years later, in the summer of 1995, Cruise was filming the first Mission: Impossible movie in London’s Pinewood Studios when he extended an invitation to Diana and princes William and Harry, then aged 13 and 10, to visit him on set. Diana’s private chef, Darren McGrady, who worked at Kensington Palace up until her death, recalls the visit on his YouTube channel.
“We had celebrities at Kensington Palace all the time. She came into the kitchen one morning and said, ‘Darren, we’ve had an invite to go and watch the making of Mission: Impossible, for me to take William and Harry,'” he recounts. “They were young then and loved the pyrotechnics and everything.”
McGrady remembers her saying, “Do you think the boys would be interested?” He did think they’d be interested—and their mother too, he revealed in the video he made for what would have been her 60th birthday. “I remember saying, ‘I’m not sure about the boys, Your Royal Highness, but if you get to meet Tom Cruise?’ … She said, ‘Darren, I’ll crack the funnies.’”
Why did Princess Diana say she’d never date him?
It turns out Diana thought Tom was just a little too short for her. In a hilarious anecdote, McGrady reveals that after they had enjoyed their set visit, “she came into the kitchen later that day, and the boys absolutely loved it—all those explosions and things,” he says, before adding the princess’ punch line: “She picked up some fruit, walked out and said, ‘That’s another one off the list—he’s too short.’ She’d met Tom Cruise!” he says, chuckling.
What Cruise thinks about this story, we’d love to know. We’re sure he’d take it all in jest, as after all, he was newly married to Nicole, having tied the knot in December 1990. Their union would last a decade until the couple announced their separation in February 2001.
How tall was Diana?
The princess was willowy and tall—at 5’10”, she would indeed have been taller than Tom Cruise, who is 5’7″. Interestingly, she was the same height as Charles, but she was often photographed with her head tilted, crouching down or standing on a lower step, so she looked shorter—such as in the couple’s engagement photos in 1981.
One Hollywood star who was comfortably taller than Diana, however, was John Travolta, at 6 feet, 2 inches. Diana famously danced with the Saturday Night Fever star at the White House in 1985. Travolta explained that First Lady Nancy Reagan set it up, telling him, ‘Her fantasy is to dance with you—would you dance with her tonight?’ The Grease actor later said the whole thing felt like a fairy tale.
Did Tom and Diana cross paths again?
No. Sadly, the next time Tom and Nicole “met” the princess was at her funeral, on Sept. 6, 1997. However, Cruise continues to enjoy a close relationship with the royal family and has gone on to become friends with Prince William.
In 2022, he helped present at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, after which Queen Elizabeth invited him for tea at Windsor Castle. (The pair were said to hit it off.) That same year, he hosted William and Kate at the London premiere of Top Gun: Maverick, where Tom helped the princess up the stairs. “We have a lot in common,” he told My London at the time. “We both love England, and we’re both aviators; we both love flying.”
The following year, he recorded a video in a jet, for the King’s Coronation Concert, where he said, “Pilot to pilot, Your Majesty, you can be my wingman any time,” and gave a thumbs-up to the king in a cheeky throwback to the original movie.
This past November, the 63-year-old actor helped out at William’s Earthshot Prize awards in Rio. He recorded a video for the event, saying, “Good evening, Rio [and], my dear friend Your Royal Highness. I am sorry I couldn’t be there in person to celebrate with you.” He went on to congratulate the winners and finalists, adding, “Thank you for all the great work you are doing … reminding us what is possible when commitment meets purpose.”
RELATED:
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- Here’s Why Prince William and Prince Harry Won’t Inherit the Estate Where Princess Diana Is Buried
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Sources:
- You Tube: “A Culinary Tribute to Princess Diana on Her 60th Birthday From Her Chef”
- My London: “Top Gun Maverick UK premiere: Tom Cruise is joined by Kate Middleton and Prince William”
- Mirror Now: “Tom Cruise message at King’s Coronation Concert”
- Esquire: “John Travolta interview”
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