Katie Holmes avoided marriage talk in pre-divorce interview

Katie Holmes showed signs of marital troubles when she refused to discuss Tom Cruise in an interview conducted just one day before she filed for divorce.

The actress appeared flustered when quizzed about Cruise during her chat with Kelsey McKinnon of C Magazine on 27 June (12), the day before she announced the end of her five-year marriage.

When asked if her six-year-old daughter Suri brought Holmes and Cruise closer together, the former Dawson's Creek star was vague in her response.

She said, "I don't know. I mean... I don't know. People have been having babies a long time."

Reflecting on their interview, senior editor McKinnon admits "there were signs" of problems in Holmes' relationship.

The journalist tells WWD.com, "Going back over the tapes, there were signs: Holmes was certainly very aware of herself, laying a couple (of) cards on the table but never showing her whole hand. Most noticeably, the one name decisively absent from her lexicon: Tom Cruise. She never actually refers to him by name over pages and pages of transcription."

Holmes also hinted at starting a new chapter in her life, telling McKinnon she is "ready to take on some more challenging roles".

She explained, "I feel like I worked so much at such a young age that I really wanted to have life experiences. I feel more balanced and like I have more to bring to the table. I always felt like I wanted to catch up (in my personal life) to what I was doing (in my career)."