TBT: Tom Cruise and Sofía Vergara Are the Y2K Couple You Probably Never Knew Existed

Who: Three-time Oscar-nominated actor Tom Cruise, 60, and Colombian actress and model Sofía Vergara, 50.

How They Met: According to biographer Andrew Morton, the author of Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography, Cruise provided Scientology leaders with a list of women he'd like to date shortly after his breakup with Penelope Cruz — and on that list of names was up-and-coming actress Vergara.

In February 2005, Cruise's friend Will Smith played the role of matchmaker and invited Vergara to a pre-Oscars party, knowing full well that the Top Gun actor would be there. Per Morton, it was reportedly "a setup." But still, Vergara "was dazzled by Tom's megawatt smile and amused by the blizzard of phone calls, flowers, and chocolates that followed their first meeting."

Why We Loved Them: It's hard to say why we loved Cruise and Vergara when we never really knew them as a couple. However, if we had to guess, it would be because they were a classic situation of opposites-attract. We can easily picture Sofía pulling Tom outside of his comfort zone, teaching him how to roll his R's over dinner and dancing salsa.

When They Peaked: The one-and-only time the pair were photographed together, circa February 21, 2005.

The Breakup: It was over before it really even began. Shortly after their initial meeting, Tom reportedly suggested Sofía visit the Celebrity Center for Scientology with him, and there, they met with the church's leader David Miscavige.

"It soon became clear that she was being auditioned for the biggest role of her life — Mrs. Tom Cruise," wrote Morton, adding: "It was made clear that if she took the part, she would have to renounce her Catholic faith and convert to Scientology."

That was not something Sofía was willing to do, and so she and Cruise split. "She was fundamentally terrified of Scientology," a friend of the actress told Morton. "She sincerely believed that she would be struck down by God and burn in hell if she joined."

Where They Are Now: Cruise went on to memorably marry Katie Holmes after his fling with Vergara. The two welcomed daughter Suri Cruise that same year. Katie and Tom didn't last, and they divorced in 2012. As of recently, Tom has been linked to his Mission Impossible co-star Hayley Atwell. The pair were rumored to be dating on and off since 2020, but they reportedly ended things officially in June.

Since then, Cruise's acting career has been wildly successful. He continues to reprise his role as Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible series, and as of this summer, he returned to playing Maverick in the Top Gun sequel. Next year, another Mission Impossible movie is on the docket.

Vergara is married to actor Joe Manganiello — and happily so. The two recently celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary with cute throwback photos and videos from their big day — including one of their first dance to Frank Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight."

Four years after dating Cruise, Vergara went on to get her big break as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in the NBC sitcom Modern Family. The show was on the air from 2009 to 2020, and since the series finale two years ago, Sofía has picked up several gigs — most notably the lead in a new Netflix series titled Griselda, in which she portrays drug cartel leader Griselda Blanco.

#TBT: Check in every Thursday as we throw it back to some of our favorite celebrity couples of all time.