War of the Worlds’ leading man, Tom Cruise, appears to have been in a giving mood with his co-stars since featuring in the acclaimed sci-fi action thriller. Co-star Dakota Fanning reveals the birthday gift Cruise continues to send her yearly.
Speaking on The Kelly Clarkson Show, Fanning confirmed Cruise has been sending her birthday gifts annually since War of the Worlds premiered in 2005. After initially gifting Fanning a phone for her 11th birthday, Cruise pivoted to giving the fellow actor shoes, knowing Fanning is a huge footwear lover. “He always sends me the same thing every year,” Fanning said. “I loved shoes when I was little, and I started to be able to fit into really small adult shoes when I was on the War of the Worlds press tour, so I was really excited about them. So from that birthday on, he always sends me shoes.”
The now 30-year-old Fanning previously spoke about how Cruise continues to be generous to her and fellow War of the Worlds stars by sending birthday presents to them annually. Cruise first gifted Fanning a Motorola Razr, a popular phone at the time. “I didn’t have anyone to call, but I wanted a Razr so bad,” Fanning said. “I must have been talking about it a lot because that’s what he got me. It’s such a great memory.”
Steven Spielberg Directed War of the Worlds
Directed by Steven Spielberg, War of the Worlds was loosely based on H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds novel, with Cruise starring as Ray Ferrier, an American dockworker tasked with protecting his estranged children and reuniting them with their mother as extraterrestrials invade Earth and wipe out humanity with huge war machines. Fanning played Cruise’s daughter Rachel in one of her biggest child acting roles, having previously starred opposite Denzel Washington in Man on Fire. The film became a critical and commercial hit, earning multiple Academy Award nominations and Fanning a Saturn Award.
Fanning’s most recent big-screen appearance was a reunion with Washington in The Equalizer 3, portraying Emma Collins opposite Washington’s vigilante lead character Robert McCall. She’s also the lead actor in Ishana Shyamalan’s new supernatural horror film, The Watchers, which opens in theaters on Jun. 7.
Meanwhile, Fanning has also been a regular in the Netflix neo-noir psychological thriller, Ripley, which premiered this past April. She stars in the series alongside Andrew Scott and Johnny Flynn, with Bokeem Woodbine and John Malkovich featuring in guest roles.
Fans can stream War of the Worlds via Paramount+.
Source: The Kelly Clarkson Show via Entertainment Weekly
