Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise reach an agreement in their divorce settlement

American stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes have reached an out of court private settlement in their divorce case, avoiding a very public court battle and detailed exposure of the actor’s links to Scientology.

Only time will tell if the quick divorce settlement reached between Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise lasts longer than their 5-year marriage. The remarkably swift deal, which both of them have signed, was concluded just eleven days after the 33-year-old Katie Holmes filed for divorce with her ex-husband Hollywood star Tom Cruise and followed marathon negotiations between 2 teams of attorneys.

It will need to, since the agreement will guide how the actors raise their 6-year-old daughter Suri for years to come. Yet major disputes could put the pair back in lawyers’ offices and force them to enter a place they have avoided so far — a courtroom.

Katie Holmes & Tom Cruise reach speedy divorce settlement

Representatives for American actress Katie Holmes and Hollywood movie star Tom Cruise declined to elaborate on the agreement. In a joint statement released, the pair said they were working together to settle custody of their 6-year-old daughter Suri.

The divorce has raised speculation among Hollywood media that the couple differed on raising Suri as a Scientologist. Neither Holmes nor Cruise’s legal team would comment. A lawyer for the Church of Scientology denied that Tom Cruise wanted Suri to join the Sea Organization.

The Hollywood split has played out in the celebrity news media, where Katie Holmes has been portrayed with overwhelmingly more sympathy. Whether true or not, the narrative that’s emerged is of a locked-away Holmes breaking free from the servitude of a strange marriage with Tom Cruise.

Former couple’s Cruise and Holmes divorce settlement inaccurate / 6-year-old daughter Suri will live primarily with her mother Katie

Some time ago Tom Cruise famously raised eyebrows when he jumped on a sofa on the Oprah Winfrey Show as he declared his love for the actress Katie Holmes. Cruise proposed to Katie Holmes at the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the couple were married in an Italian castle by a Church of Scientology minister.

Katie Holmes is currently living in a three-bedroom apartment in New York with her daughter Suri, while Tom Cruise is based primarily in Los Angeles with his 2 adopted children – Connor and Bella.

The reference to ‘ respective beliefs ‘ in the statement appeared to confirm that Scientology, and its role in Suri’s upbringing, was a key factor in the split. The rapid settlement saves the American couple from a public battle that was sure to be covered vigorously by the world’s celebrity news media.