Tom Cruise has arrived in Rome with his mother Mary Lee Mapother and his children Isabella and Conor. The Mission: Impossible star and his entourage of ten flew in from LA in his private jet on Monday and were quickly whisked away to a luxury hotel in the Italian capital.
The Hollywood heart-throb is in the city to prepare for this week's high-profile wedding to his fiancée Katie Holmes, the mother of the couple's daughter, Suri, who was born in April. They are set to tie the knot in the romantic medieval castle of Odescalchi on the shores of Lake Bracciano, 40 kilometres from Rome.
According to local reports three days of celebrations will begin on Thursday with a pre-wedding party, followed by a Catholic ceremony on Friday at the 15th-century castle and a Scientology blessing on Saturday.
Five hundred VIP guests are expected at the festivities, 150 of which will be flown in by Pulp Fiction actor and pilot John Travolta in his $125-million Boeing 707. Russell Crowe, Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett, Steven Spielberg and the Beckhams are all expected to be among the roll call of starry attendees.
Giorgio Armani, who has designed the wedding outfits for both Tom and Katie, will also be there, as will famed Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli who is to sing Ave Maria during the ceremony.
The arrival of the 44-year-old War Of The Worlds star has caused a frenzy in Rome, with hundreds of curious fans gathering in front of the Hassler Villa Medici hotel where Tom is staying with his family.
It is unknown whether Katie flew out with him or if she is due to arrive later.
Celebrating their wedding in Italy seems to bring things full circle for the couple who made their first public appearance together at the country's cinema awards in spring 2005. At the time a loved-up Tom declared his feelings for the Batman Begins actress, saying: "She is extraordinary." And by June 2005 the pair were engaged, after Tom asked for Katie's hand atop the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
This week's wedding will be the actress' first, although she was previously engaged to actor Chris Klein. Tom has been married twice before, to Mimi Rogers and then Nicole Kidman.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
