Katie Holmes is said to be standing firmly behind her daughter, Suri, amid fresh reports that the young woman has chosen to stop using the last name of her estranged father, Tom Cruise.
‘Katie wasn’t surprised by Suri’s decision to legally drop “Cruise” from her last name because that’s just who Suri is,’ a source told Page Six on Wednesday.
‘This was not a sudden move or something that happened overnight. It was a choice that developed gradually, and Katie honored Suri’s feelings throughout the entire process,’ the source added.
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for both Holmes and Cruise seeking comment, but has not yet received a response.
According to the insider, Holmes, 47, believes 20-year-old Suri is ‘old enough to make her own decisions,’ and is fully supportive of whatever path her daughter believes is right for her.
The source also claimed that Holmes did not influence or pressure Suri into making the change, insisting the decision came entirely from Suri herself.
Katie Holmes reportedly ‘wasn’t surprised’ by daughter Suri’s choice to drop Tom Cruise’s surname, with a source telling Page Six on Wednesday that the decision had been building over time; Holmes and Suri are pictured in New York City in August 2025
Tom Cruise has reportedly had no relationship with his daughter for years, following his 2012 split from Katie Holmes and her decision to distance herself from Scientology; pictured July 19 in East Rutherford, New Jersey
The insider said Holmes feels proud of the independent young woman Suri has become, after encouraging her daughter to ‘think for herself’ and grow into her own identity.
‘She’s an adult now, and Katie has always believed those kinds of personal decisions are hers to make,’ they continued.
The insider added that Holmes’s ultimate goal is for Suri to ‘be happy and live life on her own terms.’
The publication reported earlier this week that Holmes’s daughter had changed her name from Suri Cruise to Suri Noelle, taking her mother’s middle name as her surname.
Suri registered to vote in Pennsylvania – where she attends Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh – in October 2024, using the name Suri Noelle, according to the voter registration records obtained by The Daily Mail.
Pennsylvania residents are required to register to vote using their legal name.
Suri registered in Allegheny County, though she did not file a name change request there, suggesting she may have done it in New York before she left for college, according to Page Six.
Cruise, 64, has reportedly been completely estranged from his daughter for years following his 2012 divorce from Holmes and her decision to cut ties with Scientology.
The insider reportedly said that Holmes, 47, thinks 20-year-old Suri is ‘old enough to make her own decisions, and she fully supports whatever she feels is right for her’; Holmes and Suri pictured in 2025
The source said Holmes was proud of how independent her daughter had become after raising her to always ‘think for herself and become her own person,’ and they added that the Dawson’s Creek star hadn’t pushed Suri toward the decision to drop Cruise’s name; Cruise seen in April
Suri is following in the footsteps of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s children, four of whom have also filed to drop their famous father’s last name amid an ongoing estrangement.
Before moving to Pennsylvania, Suri lived with her mother – who’s currently romancing artist Jason Bard Yarmosky, 39 – in New York, where name change records are typically sealed to protect privacy.
While the exact date of her legal name change remains unclear, Suri has been using the moniker Noelle publicly for several years.
She previously used the name for her high school graduation in June 2024.
Suri also opted not to use her dad’s last name on the casting sheet of her senior year high school play The Addams Family: A New Musical, according to a report from Yahoo.
Holmes married Cruise in 2006 before filing for divorce in 2012.
Since then, she has had custody of Suri, who has reportedly not had a relationship with her father since 2013.
Suri has spent years living in the shadow of frenzied speculation over her infamously fractured relationship with her famous father.
The college student changed her name from Suri Cruise to Suri Noelle, taking her mother’s middle name as her surname; Pictured in 2025
Suri registered to vote in Pennsylvania, where she attends college, in October 2024, using the name Suri Noelle, according to the voter registration records obtained by The Daily Mail; Seen with Holmes in 2024
Suri registered in Allegheny County, though she did not file a name change request there, suggesting she may have done it in New York before she left for college
In 2024, she celebrated her milestone 18th birthday without her dad, who has all but been exiled from his youngest child’s life for many years – a bitter rift that stems in large part from Holmes’s and Suri’s decision to cut ties with his controversial Scientology faith.
The wedge that was initially driven between father and child at the time of his 2012 divorce has since become a rock-solid wall – one that Suri has no plans to ever break down, The Daily Mail previously revealed in 2024.
At the time, a source noted that she is crystal clear on one thing: ‘Tom does not exist to her.’
‘Suri will not have any contact with her father, despite being 18, and even if he called, she would not answer,’ one source said.
‘He does not exist to Katie or Suri, and his daughter does not want to rely on him for anything. She feels that she has one parent and that is her mother.’
Holmes became an empty nester after Suri began her freshman year at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Mellon in August 2024.
‘I’m proud of my daughter. Of course, I will miss the close proximity, but I’m really proud of her and I’m happy,’ Holmes told Town & Country in 2024.
‘I remember being this age, this time of beginnings. It’s exciting to learn about yourself, and I loved that time, so it makes me happy to think about it like that,’ the mother-of-one added.
Holmes married Cruise in 2006 before filing for divorce in 2012. Since then she has had custody of Suri, who has reportedly not had a relationship with her father since 2013; He is seen with Suri in 2010
The Mission Impossible star was given visitation rights, but the last photo of Cruise out and about with Suri was a trip to Disneyland in 2012; Holmes, Cruise and Suri seen in 2006
Suri is following in the footsteps of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s children, four of whom have also filed to drop their famous father’s last name amid an ongoing estrangement; Jolie pictured with her six children in 2019
An insider previously told the Daily Mail about Suri’s early days at college: ‘She is a smart girl, and she is turning into a very intelligent mature young woman. She has a very close group of loyal friends, and she knows exactly where she comes from.’
It is a sad ending to what began as a seemingly-fairytale romance between her parents, one that left Cruise literally jumping for joy when he bounced up and down on Oprah’s couch in 2005 while proclaiming his love for Holmes.
Months later, the pair were wed in an elegant and suitably glitzy ceremony that was soon splashed across the cover of Hello! magazine, giving the world an inside look at Hollywood’s newest golden couple.
But that glitz soon began to tarnish, and just five and a half years after their wedding, Holmes had filed for divorce, a move that Cruise has since admitted he was ‘deeply saddened’ by.
Suri was just six years old when her parents’ marriage fell apart. Questions over whether she would continue to follow her father’s faith were quickly answered: Holmes was awarded sole custody of their daughter and made it glaringly apparent that she had no plans to allow Suri to be caught up in the world of Scientology.
The Mission: Impossible star was given visitation rights, but the last photo of Cruise out and about with Suri was a trip to Disneyland in 2012.
Despite being estranged from her father, Suri is following in the acting footsteps of her famous parents by taking on a role in an iconic William Shakespeare play.
The student, who is majoring in musical theater, will appear in Midsummer!, a contemporary adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, per Page Six.
Suri will perform in the 90-minute production alongside other classmates at the Trust Arts Education Center’s Peirce Studio in Pittsburgh, which accommodates a maximum capacity of 175 people.
The show will play two nights, July 31 and August 1. Following these exclusive previews, the production will head overseas for a UK run at the 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe from August 7 through August 31.
Aside from Suri, Cruise has two adult children, Isabella and Connor, whom he adopted during his marriage to Nicole Kidman.
