Dakota Fanning Reveals the Surprising Birthday Tradition with Tom Cruise Since Their 2005 Movie ‘War of the Worlds’

The bond created on the set of War of the Worlds still thrives, with birthday presents serving as a continued connection. Tom Cruise is a renowned A-list actor in Hollywood known for his action chops. What adds a layer to his charm is his humble demeanor, as suggested by his co-stars. His co-star, Dakota Fanning, from his 2005 film War of the Worlds, took the internet by storm in April when she revealed that not only did Tom Cruise gift her a cell phone when she celebrated her 11th birthday on the set of their 2005 movie, but that he’s also proceeded to send her a birthday gift every year since. However, in an interesting turn, the actress recently shared during her appearance on Kelly Clarkson’s daytime talk show that Cruise’s birthday present has not only been consistent in nearly two decades, but it has also been the same.

What’s Inside Tom Cruise’s Birthday Present for Dakota Fanning?

In 2005 came an action/sci-fi film, War of the Worlds, directed by Steven Spielberg. The film follows an American dock worker who must look after his children, from whom he lives separately, as he struggles to protect them and reunite them with their mother when extraterrestrials invade Earth and devastate cities with giant war machines. The film features Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning, who portrayed the role of his daughter.

During a recent interview, Fanning shared that she celebrated her 11th birthday on the set of War of the Worlds. She said, “I turned 11 on ‘War of the Worlds,’ when we worked together and he gave me my first cell phone for that birthday. It was a Motorola Razr…I didn’t have anyone to call, but I wanted a Razr so bad. I must have been talking about it a lot because that’s what he got me. It’s such a great memory.”

While her gift from Cruise was a cell phone, her next gift on the following birthday was different, turning into a birthday tradition between them. The 30-year-old actress shared, “He always sends me the same thing every year. 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.”

So it can be said that Fanning certainly must have a massive shoe collection gifted by Tom Cruise.