Tom Cruise's career may have had its ups and downs, but one thing that's always remained constant are his controlling tendencies. And this so-called 'Cruise control' is clearest when he's with the glamorous ladies in his life.

These days the 45-year-old superstar is usually seen dragging his young wife Katie Holmes, 29, along the red carpet, or posing with purpose alongside his supposed close friends, such as Julia Roberts.

The domineering stance and tight grip on the flame-haired star's arm at a recent event has been Tom's trademark red-carpet move since becoming Hollywood's darling after the big successes of Top Gun and Cocktail.

Body language expert Allan Pease says Tom's entire career has shown evidence of him being an 'absolute control freak', and explains why with these pictures.

'Every one of these shots show that with the women in his life, there's a control situation,' Allan says. And a major factor
in Tom's strange public behaviour comes from his height, the expert says.

'Shorter guys are always trying to prove a point,' Allan says. 'Taller men don't tend to have power issues. That's why taller guys tend to be pretty easygoing and shorter men are always trying to prove something. It's a pretty common thing that shorter guys are more into control.'

Katie's a perfect match

Unlike other women who have been in Tom's life, in Katie's case Allan can see no resistance from his controlling charms, despite Tom always pulling her in his direction with force.

'There's no tension at all, she's relaxed and he's guiding her where she needs to go,' he says.

Strangely, there's balance in this dynamic with Tom being dominant and Katie, unlike her predecessors, appears willing to be submissive.

'Those relationships will work because each is satisfying the other one's needs,' Allan says.

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