Keeping Their Distance at Premiere

The night their divorce became final, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman kept their distance at the premiere of “The Others,” a suspense-thriller starring Kidman, produced by Cruise.

Tuesday’s event in West Hollywood marked the first time the two stars have come anywhere near each other in public since their February split. They didn’t interact at all.

Kidman arrived first, holding hands with two friends, Australian actresses Naomi Watts and Rebecca Rigg. Cruise arrived 30 minutes later--sans Penelope Cruz--with his publicist Pat Kingsley. Kidman was seated in the theater by the time Cruise set foot on the red carpet of the Director’s Guild of America.

Kidman, in black couture by Frederic Molenac, refused to talk about Cruise or the divorce, saying simply she looks forward to a break. “It’ll be a big relief,” she said. “I’ll be with my kids. Be with my family. Eat. Sleep. Play.”

Cruise also shied away from comments about Kidman, other than to praise her professionally. “I’ve always been a fan of her work, even before we were together,” he said. “I’ve always believed in her talent. When I read the script, I wanted her to play this role. It’s a tour-de-force character--I knew she would be great.”

Was he uncomfortable being present with Kidman on the eve of their divorce? “Actually, no,” he said, laughing. Cruise said that at the stroke of midnight--when the divorce would be final--he would be at home with their two children, Conor and Isabella.

Kidman, meanwhile, joined Quentin Tarantino, Harvey Weinstein and Michael Eisner at the exclusive after-party at the SkyBar. Ensconced in the VIP room, Kidman kicked off her shoes, while Eisner munched on spicy tuna sushi and party co-host Tina Brown chatted with MTV’s Chris Connolly.

Tina Talks, White House Balks

Talk magazine editor Tina Brown isn’t particularly moved by the White House’s boycott of her publication in the wake of a satiric photo spread depicting the Bush twins as glammed-up jailbirds. (On Friday, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer refused to give information about the president’s schedule to a Washington Post columnist working on a piece for Talk.)

“It’s a rush to judgment,” Brown told us Tuesday night at the SkyBar as she co-hosted the after-party for “The Others.” She shrugged off White House comments that a picture of two models pouting as a George W. Bush look-alike looks on was “disrespectful.” She added that administration officials probably hadn’t even seen the magazine, which hit newsstands Wednesday.

The issue is the first for Talk’s new editorial director Maer Roshan, on the job six weeks after leaving New York magazine. The photos are part of a larger spread, themed “girls behaving badly.” “Did we think it was going to get some attention?” she asked. “Yes. But I never imagined the president would shut off a national news organization from association with the White House.”

Meanwhile, Jenna Bush has reportedly left L.A. after her club-hopping fired up the Hollywood paparazzi like a Texas thunderstorm.

Bush’s summer internship at Brillstein-Grey ended last week, not a moment too soon for media-weary folks at the Beverly Hills production agency.

The press has hounded the president’s 19-year-old daughters “mercilessly,” one agency staff member told us. “I’m sick of it. They would like to have some privacy. [Jenna] needs some anonymity.”

Dunne and the Brothers Grim

Writer Dominick Dunne wants to talk to convicted parent killers Lyle and Erik Menendez in prison to find out what really happened on that bloody August night 12 years ago in Beverly Hills. Dunne covered the brothers’ two trials for Vanity Fair and made no secret of his belief in their guilt. “I feel sorry for them in a way,” Dunne told a gathering Tuesday night just a few blocks from the house on Elm Drive where the brothers walked into the family room with shotguns and blasted Jose and Kitty Menendez. During two trials in Van Nuys, Dunne never believed the brothers’ story that they were sexually abused by their father, a powerful entertainment executive.

The brothers, who were rich, athletic and good-looking, were convicted of murder in 1996 after a first trial ended with hung juries. They were sentenced to life in separate prisons without the possibility of parole.

“What have they got to lose?” said Dunne. “They’re there for life. Why did they do it?” The writer, who has called the brothers spoiled brats and liars, added, “I bet they let me come. I bet Lyle does. I feel sympathy toward them--not because of what they did. I hate what they did.”

Dunne was at Raffles L’Ermitage hotel for a reading of his latest book, a compilation of his magazine articles called “Justice: Crimes, Trials and Punishments” (Crown). Among the guests: the ubiquitous Salman Rushdie.

Sightings

Watching Woody Allen’s jazz set at the Jazz Bakery in Culver City: Ben Stiller, Giovanni Ribisi, Beck, Jason Lee and Dom DeLuise. ... Warren Beatty and Annette Bening dining at Granita in Malibu. ... Same restaurant, different night: John Cusack and friends. ... At Deep: Matt Dillon on Friday. ... Sandra Bullock and George Clooney on Saturday....

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Times staff writers Gina Piccalo and Louise Roug contributed to this column. City of Angles runs Tuesday-Friday.