She recently found herself in the eye of a very public media storm, after being filmed sharing an apparently heated moment with Salma Hayek on the red carpet. But while Nicole Kidman has been doing her best to quash rumours of a feud and maintain a “business as usual” approach to proceedings, it seems her attempts are being thwarted somewhat by a certain ex-husband of hers who can’t help but stir the pot.

According to insiders, Tom Cruise has been very loudly digging for gossip about the actresses’ frosty interaction, and vocally assuming that Nicole was to blame for whatever transpired between them. But while Nicole’s never bitten back in the past, we’re told she’s no longer feeling quite so magnanimous towards her ex. If he wants to launch another war against her, as far as she’s concerned, she’s ready for battle. 

“Nicole hasn’t said anything in the past that paints Tom in a bad light, but that hasn’t stopped him from flying off the handle anytime he finds out she’s even mentioned his name,” says an insider close to the former couple, who were married for 11 years, before splitting acrimoniously in 2001. “So, it’s pretty ironic that he’s now stirring the pot and gossiping about her. He claims it’s because he finds the situation between her and Salma strange, especially how quickly they both moved to do damage control, but he’s not fooling anyone. He’s clearly loving that she’s been caught looking off her game and he’s seized on it.”

For someone who never takes a misstep in the public eye, it certainly was out of character for Nicole to seemingly lose her cool on the red carpet during Paris Fashion Week last month. In a video clip that has since gone viral, the actress could be seen standing in front of photographers at the Balenciaga show, next to Salma and Katy Perry. Though we can’t hear exactly what the famous ladies were saying, we can clearly see Salma that touched Nicole – who had her back to the cameras – on the arm, in an attempt to bring her into a photo with them, before Nicole brusquely pushed Salma’s hand away. She then kissed Katy goodbye and walked away – before sharing a few more words off-camera with Salma. It’s unclear exactly what they said, but some internet sleuths believe Nicole yelled, “You don’t need it!” at Salma.

Obviously, insiders in both stars’ camps have been quick to temper the situation, saying the internet is making a mountain out of a molehill and there is no bad blood between the actresses. Following the event, Salma was quick to post a slew of photos from the fashion show, including one of her and Nicole looking happy together. What’s more, it’s important to remember this event was Nicole’s first public engagement since the death of her beloved mum, Janelle, a few weeks earlier. Therefore, it’s no surprise that she didn’t want to stand too long on ceremony in front of the paps, and simply wanted to make her way inside the event. Even if she did lose her patience with Salma, it’s clear it wasn’t personal and any tension was resolved quickly.

Still, that apparently hasn’t stopped Tom from doing all he can to dig further into the kerfuffle. The actor, for his part, counts Salma as one of his oldest friends in the business, whom he first grew close to her while dating her good friend Penelope Cruz, before producing her film, Ask the Dust in 2005. Most recently, he was pictured cuddling up to her at Victoria Beckham’s 50th birthday party in April. So, it’s fair to say that Nicole is feeling slightly put out by news that her ex is getting involved and fuelling the fire on what was, by all accounts, an overblown incident – especially since she’s heard that he’s picking sides and sticking firmly in Salma’s lane.

“Nicole and Salma are both trying to downplay the incident, but that hasn’t stopped Tom from poking his nose in and bringing it up to his contacts,” we’re told. “He’s really trying to get the inside dirt and is guessing it’s his ex-wife who’s to blame. He’s playing a pretty dangerous game because it’s obviously going to get back to Nicole, and if he’s not careful, she will go on the attack. At this point in her life, she’s not afraid to take the gloves off.”

While Tom, 62, has been presenting himself as more laidback and carefree as of late, it’s no secret that he’s been known to hold a tight grip on his narrative in the past – infamously having both Nicole and his third ex-wife, Katie Holmes, sign highly binding NDAs as part of their divorce settlements. But while Nicole, 57, has toed the line loyally in the past, only hinting at the pain she incurred after splitting with Tom and ostensibly losing close contact with their children, Bella, 31, and Connor, 29 – who chose to stay with Tom and live as Scientologists – in the process. Having been labelled a “suppressive person” by the all-powerful church of Scientology (which allegedly wields a lot of power in Hollywood), it’s long been believed that Nicole would rather keep her experiences as Tom’s wife under wraps, rather than face any repercussions.

Now, however, times have changed. One silver lining, since sadly losing her mum in September, is that Nicole has apparently been in touch with her older children, who both reached out to her in the wake of the news. Meanwhile, having declined to ever comment on her marriage to Tom in the past, saying four years ago that she “not willing” to look back on events, she’s recently been more open – reflecting on their time, while married, filming Eyes Wide Shut earlier this year for the film’s 25th anniversary. The actress didn’t say anything negative about her former husband, but she did say that the director, Stanley Kubrick, was mining their relationship for the film – which tells the story of a couple in crisis. We’re told her rare comments on the subject were a signal to Tom that she’s no longer willing to be silenced.

With that in mind, we’re told Tom should tread carefully when it comes to getting involved in whatever happened between Nicole and Salma.

“If Nicole decides to hit back, Tom could find himself very embarrassed,” says our source. “People are warning him he’s playing with fire.”