Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes have called a truce in their acrimonious split and have released a joint statement.

The actor was blindsided when the former Dawson's Creeks star filed for divorce late last month and requested sole legal custody of their six-year-old daughter Suri.

There have been rampant rumours about the cause of the split and whether Scientology was a major factor in the breakdown of the five-year marriage.

But now the estranged couple appears to want to handle things in a civil manner and have joined forces to speak out about the issue.

"We are committed to working together as parents to accomplish what is in our daughter Suri's best interests," the statement from both of their representatives read.

"We want to keep matters affecting our family private and express our respect for each other's commitment to each of our respective beliefs and support each other's roles as parents."

People reports that the pair are trying to hammer out an out-of-court settlement with sources telling the publication that Suri will likely live in New York with her mother with Tom given generous visitation rights.