Rosie O'Donnell talks about her 25-year friendship with Tom Cruise

American comedian Rosie O'Donnell, recently opened up about her 25-year-old friendship with Hollywood star Tom Cruise, saying that 'he has never forgotten my birthday'.

According to Fox News, O'Donnell has a friendship with Hollywood star Tom Cruise that spans over two decades and apparently runs so deep that while the funny woman believes Scientology to be "a cult," she says she doesn't even speak to the actor about it.

O'Donnell joined SiriusXM's 'The Jess Cagle Show' and opened up about whether or not her "crush" on the 'Top Gun' franchise star has "abated" or "become deeper and more profound over time."

Cruise had made several appearances on O'Donnell's eponymous daytime talk show, which aired from 1996 to 2002 and saw O'Donnell speak about her love for the star.

In the interview on Thursday, the actor and comic raved about Cruise as "the only person who never misses my birthday" in her 25 years of knowing the actor, adding "he has never missed an event in my life."

Despite their close connection, O'Donnell said she doesn't know the three-time Oscar nominee well enough to delve into specifics regarding his religion.

"Now I don't know him enough to go, 'Hey, Tommy, it's Ro, the Scientology thing can we chat?' Like, that's not my relationship with Tom Cruise. I don't have his home phone number," she explained.

O'Donnell further continued" I know people think in Hollywood and celebrity, everybody knows each other, but I know him in the way that I did in that time 25 years ago. But every year, I think what a classy guy he is that he never has forgotten my birthday."

"A lot of people say to me, it's just his secretary, but I don't believe that. I think he knows in early March, 'Oh, it's Rosie's birthday coming up.' And he sends me something every single year for 25 years," she concluded.

Although the friends have since strayed apart, at the end of the day, O'Donnell maintains that "I love Tom Cruise and I will always love Tom Cruise."

Elsewhere in the interview, O'Donnell had pressed, "I do not understand, you know, the Scientology religion. I think it's a cult and it's scary. And I think Leah Remini is a hero for doing what she's done."

Cruise is currently filming 'Mission: Impossible 7', which recently had to halt filming after at least one production member tested positive for coronavirus earlier this month.

"We have temporarily halted production on 'Mission: Impossible 7' until June 14th, due to positive coronavirus test results during routine testing. We are following all safety protocols and will continue to monitor the situation," a Paramount spokesperson said in a statement at the time.

( With inputs from ANI )