Kirsten Dunst Remembers Tom Cruise Decorating Her Dressing Room for Christmas on theInterview with the VampireSet

Mar. 15, 2025

Kirsten Dunst and Brad Pitt in 1994’s ‘Interview with the Vampire’.Photo:Warner Brothers/Getty Images

Kirsten Dunst latches onto Brad Pitt as they are approached by Antonio Banderas in a scene from the film ‘Interview With The Vampire

Warner Brothers/Getty Images

Released in theaters on Nov. 11, 1994,Interview with the Vampirewas a box office hit, withTom CruiseandBrad Pittleading an all-star adaptation ofAnne Rice’s gothic horror novel about the famed vampire Lestat.

In the 30 years sinceInterview with the Vampire’s release, Dunst, 42, has opened up about making the movie, reflecting on the supportive bond she created with her older male costars and having to share a “gross” on-screen kiss with Pitt.

From Left: Kirsten Dunst, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise in 1994’s ‘Interview with the Vampire’.Warner Bros.

Interview with the Vampire

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A budding child star at the time, Dunst followedInterview with the Vampirewith small roles in Woody Allen’sNew York Stories(1989) and Brian De Palma’sThe Bonfire of the Vanities(1990).

“I auditioned many, many times for this role. This was also a huge deal for me. This was my, you know, breakout role,” Dunst said in aninterview with Netflix, adding, “And then I had another screen test after that with Tom Cruise, and I remember I was the tallest of all the young girls. He had to pick each one of us up and, like, carry us around just to see how we looked against Tom and who looked the most childlike, I guess.”

Whilespeaking with Stephen ColbertonThe Late Show, Dunst shared what it was like to work with Cruise and Pitt at the time — especially considering their superstar status in Hollywood during the ’90s.

Revealing that she was aware of who they were, she said she was “very innocent” about it. “I feel like I watched Brad inA River Runs Throughand Tom was inFar and Away, which I loved. They treated me like a little sister. It was very sweet, I was a very innocent 12-year-old. I was just doing my job and they were very sweet to me,” she said.

In anotherinterview with theTelegraphshe did while promoting her 2024 role inCivil War, Dunst remembered how Pitt felt “like an older brother to me.” She added, “[I was] treated like a princess … Yes, it was a virtually all-male set, but everyone was very gentle and kind, and nothing ever felt weird.”

Kirsten Dunst with Brad Pitt in 1994’s ‘Interview with the Vampire’.Francois Duhamel/Sygma via Getty

Kirsten Dunst and Brad Pitt in Interview with the Vampire

Francois Duhamel/Sygma via Getty

She also recalled how Cruise helped her celebrate the holidays while filming the scenes for the movie in London’s Pinewood Studios. “One morning, around Christmas, I remember going into my dressing room at Pinewood and he’d set up a beautiful tree in there for me, covered in ornaments,” she shared.

She previously shared on theGraham Norton Showthat “we call it the Cruise cake at my house. It’s the best coconut cake I’ve ever had in my life,” adding that her husband,Jesse Plemons, also “gets the cakes, so we double up on our cakes.”

Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst and Tom Cruise at the 1994 premiere of ‘Interview with the Vampire’.Ron Davis/Getty; Jim Smeal/Ron Galella Collection via Getty; Eric Robert/Sygma/Sygma via Getty

Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, Tom Cruise

Ron Davis/Getty; Jim Smeal/Ron Galella Collection via Getty; Eric Robert/Sygma/Sygma via Getty

In a separate interview withVanity Fair, she noted that scene was one of the more awkward moments during filming. “At that point, I was a little girl, and he was like a brother to me, and it was very weird,” she said. “Even though it was a peck, I just was very not into it.”

That said, Dunst — who went on to star in several Sofia Coppola films, theSpider-Manfranchise and earn an Oscar nomination forPower of the Dog— noted toETthat Pitt and Cruise “were so sweet to me.” She added, “I mean, listen, that production, that film, was like nothing else I’ve ever experienced — maybeMarie Antoinette, because of where we shot. Other than that, they just don’t make movies like that anymore.”

source: people.com