'I told Tom Cruise to cool it with Scientology': Actor's ex-publicist Pat Kingsley recalls religion discussion... and reveals how star fired her

PUBLISHED: 18:25 EST, 12 December 2013 | UPDATED: 18:25 EST, 12 December 2013

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Tom Cruise's former publicist has revealed she once told the actor to 'cool it' with Scientology.

Pat Kingsley, 81, tells The Hollywood Reporter that she and the Top Gun star had a chat about the controversial religion in the early days of their working relationship.

'I did have that conversation with Tom, about cooling it,' Kingsley tells the publication, adding she once told Cruise: 'Scientology is fine. You want to do a tour for Scientology? Do a tour for Scientology. But Warner Bros. is sponsoring this tour.

Revelation: Tom Cruise, pictured earlier this month, had discussions with ex-publicist Pat Kingsley, she has revealed

I told him to cool it: Pat Kingsley, pictured in 2011, says she had conversations with her former client about Scientology

'That was for [2003's] The Last Samurai. He didn't say yes or no, except he did not discuss Scientology on that European tour,' she added.

Kingsley, who worked with the actor from 1992 until he famously fired her back in 2004, recalls having just one conflict with the Church about Cruise.

'It was taken care of very early in the game,' she says. 'I felt that they were involved in a story that I was doing on Tom, and I said: "It's not your story, it's Tom's. You have to step aside." And they did.'

Kingsley, who The Hollywood Reporter describes as having 'ruled Hollywood for years, dispensing favours to a few and fearsomeness to many more, terrifying reporters and editors alike,' was apparently once so close to Cruise they 'finished each other's sentences.'

However their rapport dried up and Cruise wanted to move on.

'I think he wanted to be more personally involved in all those decisions,' she recalls. 'He felt, "Look, it's been 14 years. I think it's time I tried something different."

'And I certainly had no quarrel with that. It was his life, his career. It was not working. I was not having the rapport. I felt a kind of pulling back, and I knew it was going to happen.'

Kingsley remembers Tom telling her the news in person.

'He said, "I want you to know I've decided to make a change." I said: "I knew that was going to happen today. I guess I'll probably take a pretty big hit with the media."

'And he said, "Well, we've all had those hits, haven't we?" I said, "Yeah. I'll be OK." And then I said, "A lot of people have worked on your behalf that you're not aware of, and I'd like to have you say hello to them." So I took him around, and he saw everybody and even went to see the mailman, just as cordial as could be.'

Reunited: Kingsley is pictured embracing Cruise back in 2007, three years after he fired her as his publicist

Following Kingsley's split with Cruise, he hired his sister Lee Anne Devette to act as his publicist instead.

However, without Kingsley, Cruise managed to attract some unfavourable publicity. A year later in 2005 he famously jumped up and down in Oprah Winfrey's couch during a televised interview which went viral.

An aggressive interview with Matt Lauer on The Today Show followed where Cruise discussed Scientology and spoke out against psychiatric drugs.

The actor is now represented by Amanda Lundberg.

Unfavourable publicity: Cruise famously jumped on Oprah Winifrey's couch back in 2005, while declaring his love for Katie Holmes

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ShepherdsBush, OxBox, United States, 37 minutes ago

We have freedom of religion in this country for a reason!

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Mother of Two, At home, 39 minutes ago

I won't forget how he treated his pregnant wife Nicole at the end of their marriage. No honourable man would renew his wedding vows on Xmas and then file for divorce claiming their marriage had ended a couple of months earlier - while said wife was actually carrying his child. Despicable. And the women all leave him and find happiness.