Cruise on Cruz, Scientology, Life

By Stephen M. Silverman

12/04/2001 at 12:15 PM EST

Appearing bare-chested on the cover of "Vanity Fair" magazine, Tom Cruise bares his feelings inside. Among his statements: When it comes to his personal life, in particular why he split from his wife of 10 years, Nicole Kidman, people should "mind their own damn business . . . My personal life isn't here to sell newspapers." Yet he reveals a lot about himself and even refers to his divorce in the interview. On the break from Kidman, 34: "She knows why and she is the mother of my children and I wish her well." On his "Vanilla Sky" costar and current squeeze, Penelope Cruz, 27: "As a person and on film, she invites you in, and she's incredibly romantic, and yet, real, you know?" Then, in what the magazine described as "a rare and unguarded moment," Cruise gushed: "I thought, 'My God, I'm your boyfriend. You're my girlfriend! . . . Cruise and Cruz!'" He credited a 13-year devotion to Scientology with helping him deal with a variety of life's hurdles, from dyslexia to his estrangement from his late father to the persistent rumors that he is gay. "Life pounds you," said Cruise, 39. "You come across losses. All of a sudden something happens and now you feel like you cannot go forward or it invalidates you."